Forty five Fijian peacekeepers from the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) in Syria were released today by al-Nusra Front, a terrorist group affiliated with al-Qaeda. The IDF has confirmed that the peacekeepers are now in Israel.
The IDF spokesperson confirmed Thursday afternoon that the 45 Fijian peacekeepers that had been captured by al-Nusra Front rebels in the Syrian Golan had been released and crossed into Israel safely. …
On Wednesday, the head of Fiji’s army said the Islamist militant group had dropped all of its demands to free the hostages, but at least slightly back-pedaled later in the day as the situation appeared to deteriorate.
According to YNet, a video (part of a news report embedded below) was demanded by al-Nusra Front as a condition of the peacekeepers’ release.
The Fijian peacekeepers were kidnapped two weeks ago. A group of Filipino peacekeepers escaped from the rebels into Israel a few days later. Earlier this week, it was reported that the IDF aided and possibly provided cover fire for Irish peacekeepers who helped the Filipinos escape.
Fighting near the border with Israel between Syrian forces and the Islamist rebels has increased in recent weeks.
[Photo: euronews (in Italiano) / YouTube ]