United Nations – A group of 43 U.N. peacekeepers in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights have been detained by militants fighting the Syrian army, and the world body is working to secure their release, the United Nations said on Thursday.
Subscribe to our Daily Roundup Email
The detained peacekeepers are from the Philippines and Fiji, a U.N. official told Reuters on condition of anonymity.
“During a period of increased fighting beginning yesterday between armed elements and Syrian Arab Armed Forces within the area of separation in the Golan Heights, 43 peacekeepers from the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) were detained early this morning by an armed group in the vicinity of Al Qunaytirah,” the U.N. press office said in a statement.
It added that another 81 UNDOF peacekeepers were being restricted to their positions in the vicinity of Ar Ruwayhinah and Burayqah.
“The United Nations is making every effort to secure the release of the detained peacekeepers, and to restore the full freedom of movement of the force throughout its area of operation,”
Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in a 1967 war, and the countries technically remain at war. Syrian troops are not allowed in an area of separation under a 1973 ceasefire formalized in 1974.
UNDOF monitors the area of separation, a narrow strip of land running 45 miles (70 km) from Mount Hermon on the Lebanese border to the Yarmouk River frontier with Jordan. There are 1,223 UNDOF peacekeepers from six countries.
The force’s personnel come from Fiji, India, Ireland, Nepal, Netherlands and the Philippines. The United Nations said this week that the Philippines has decided to pull out of UNDOF, and from a U.N. force in Liberia, which is struggling with an outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus.
Blue-helmeted U.N. troops have been seized by militants several times during the Syrian civil war, now in its fourth year. In all those cases they were released safely.
What will the United Nothing learn from this?……absolutely nothing!
um… why didn’t they fight back or keep the peace?
Hahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!
Best news I’ve heard in aa looooooooong time!!
Oh my !
Perhaps the son of the kee from the moon
Better draft a resolution for a condemnation
And thirty days later
The wonderful body of
Coruption should move for a bit stronger language to condemn isis and icecream , and in six month to finally propose a resolution
To halt funding for these indecent behavior and to only fund them 40% instead of 100
>”…..in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights”? More like Syrian-occupied Golan Heights.
Only problem is how can this be blamed on the Jews?
Oh Gee, maybe their Hamas friends will help them.
Couldn’t have happened to nicer people.
A bunch of guys in blue that are paid to play useless puppets… pittyful..
There are Rockets flying back & forth over this border – so what are the UN doing about it? What are the “peace keepers” doing about it?
– Leaving the area, as they claim it is unsafe! They are running into Israel!