Heavy fighting has erupted between Syrian forces and rebel fighters in the Golan Heights, as the United Nations seeks the return of 44 peacekeepers seized there last week.
The clashes Monday happened near the Quneitra border crossing, the same area where al-Qaida-linked rebels abducted Fijian peacekeepers.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said there were casualties from Monday's fighting, but did not say how many.
On Sunday, the U.N. said it did not have information on where the peacekeepers were being held and was "actively seeking their immediate and unconditional release."
Another 75 peacekeepers from the Philippines were moved to safety after their positions came under fire.
The peacekeepers are part of the U.N. Disengagement Observer Force that monitors the buffer zone in the Golan Heights between Syria and Israel.
The clashes Monday happened near the Quneitra border crossing, the same area where al-Qaida-linked rebels abducted Fijian peacekeepers.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said there were casualties from Monday's fighting, but did not say how many.
On Sunday, the U.N. said it did not have information on where the peacekeepers were being held and was "actively seeking their immediate and unconditional release."
Another 75 peacekeepers from the Philippines were moved to safety after their positions came under fire.
The peacekeepers are part of the U.N. Disengagement Observer Force that monitors the buffer zone in the Golan Heights between Syria and Israel.
http://www.voanews.com/content/heavy-fighting-in-golan-as-un-seeks-return-of-peacekeepers/2434430.html
1/9/14
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UN continues efforts to free 44 peacekeepers held by rebels in Syria...
ReplyDeleteThe United Nations has continued negotiating with anti-government rebels in Syria in an effort to release 44 peacekeepers detained by the insurgents last week.
Clashes erupted between the fighters from al-Qaida-linked Syrian rebels and the members from the UN peacekeeping force on August 30, after the militants surrounded their encampment, activists and officials said, as the international organization risked being sucked further into the conflict.
The clashes came after the rebel groups, including the al-Nusra Front, overran a crossing near the abandoned town of Quneitra located on the frontier between Syria and Israel-controlled Golan Heights, where the Syrian government troops and the rebels had engaged in firefights for days.
http://www.jpost.com/Breaking-News/UN-continues-efforts-to-free-44-peacekeepers-held-by-rebels-in-Syria-374289
3/9/14