Preliminary inquest hearings have begun into the death of Private Seán Rooney who was killed after his convoy came under fire in south Lebanon in 2022.
A lawyer for his family said the "noxious narrative" that he had taken a wrong turn before the fatal incident should be addressed.
Pte Rooney and several colleagues were just a short distance from the main highway into Beirut when their vehicle was fired on near the southern Lebanese village of Al-Aqbiya on 14 December 2022.
The 24-year-old, from Newtowncunningham, Co Donegal, was killed while driving an armoured jeep.
He was buried with full military honours.
Another soldier, Trooper Shane Kearney from Killeagh, Co Cork, sustained a serious head injury in the attack when the vehicle in which he was travelling crashed.
At a brief sitting of Dublin District Coroner's Court, solicitor for Pte Rooney’s family, Darragh Mackin, questioned how a 24-year-old with no United Nations driving licence had been allowed to be 13km to 16km from his convoy on a route not taken before.
Mr Mackin said the issue was not "about blame but learning lessons".
He claimed the "elephant in the room" was that the UN had conducted significant investigations into the fatal incident but the preliminary hearing was told there were potential restrictions on their availability to the coroner.
Mr Mackin said it was important for the inquest as well as Pte Rooney’s family to get answers about "the tragic loss of life".
He said the soldier's family took great comfort from the fact that the coroner, Myra Cullinane, intended to contact the UN about their investigations into his death.
Mr Mackin claimed the decision represented "the first stop on the road for truth".
Answers must be provided about questions on the efficiency and effectiveness of the operation, Mr Mackin said and he called on the UN to cooperate with the investigation being conducted by the coroner.
He said there were also questions about the vehicles that were being used.
Mr Mackin said lessons must be learned from Pte Rooney's death by the "international community", as well as the Defence Forces.
He expressed hope that the investigation would be "rigorous and forensic" and said Pte Rooney was not only a hero to his family, but the soldiers he saved and Ireland.
Mr Mackin welcomed the expeditious manner in which an inquest was being held by Dr Cullinane.
He also thanked the Defence Forces for the manner in which they had paid tribute to Pte Rooney’s memory and how they were regarded as his second family.
Opening the hearing, Dr Cullinane said Pte Rooney’s death was "a very complex situation" because it occurred during UN peacekeeping duties in Lebanon.
The coroner said novel issues arose in the case and she sought advice from counsel for the Defence Forces and the Department of Defence, Remy Farrell SC, on how the UN should be contacted to assist her inquiry.
Mr Farrell said UNIFIL had carried out an initial "on the ground" report into Pte Rooney’s death to which the soldier's family would be entitled to a redacted version.
He confirmed that a separate confidential report by a UN board of inquiry had not been seen by Pte Rooney's relatives.
The court heard there was uncertainty about whether that report could be made available to a public inquiry like an inquest.
Dr Cullinane said gardaí had also carried out a significant investigation into the tragic event as part of the inquest.
Addressing Pte Rooney's mother, Natasha McCloskey, who attended today's hearing, Dr Cullinane said her son was at the centre of her mind at all times and the coroner offered her condolences "on the loss of your wonderful son".
She adjourned the hearing for further mention to 20 September.
Several court hearings have already been held in relation to the prosecution of seven Lebanese nationals who have been charged in connection with the fatal shooting of Pte Rooney.
The Irish Government has been represented at all court hearings by its Beirut-based lawyer and the Irish ambassador.
The next hearing in the case is listed for 12 February 2025.
During a visit to Lebanon in May, Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin said he expressed to the Lebanese authorities the determination of the Government to ensure all facts and circumstances of the incident were fully established.
Mr Martin said he had also stressed the need to speed up the legal proceedings because of the additional stress that the lack of progress in the case was causing Pte Rooney’s family.
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