Syrian rebels issue demands for captive UN peacekeepers
BEIRUT — Al- Qaida- linked Syrian rebels holding 45 Fijian peacekeepers hostage have issued a set of demands for their release, including the extremist group’s removal from a UN terrorist list and compensation for the killing of three of its fighters in a shootout with international troops, an official said yesterday.
The Nusra Front seized the Fijians on Thursday in the Golan Heights, where a 1,200strong UN force monitors the buffer zone between Syria and Israel. The rebels also surrounded two Filipino units, but those UN troops escaped over the weekend.
Speaking in the Fijian capital of Suva, military commander Brigadier General Mosese Tikoitoga said the Nusra Front has made three demands for the peacekeepers’ release: to be taken off the UN terrorist list, the delivery of humanitarian aid to parts of the Syrian capital of Damascus, and payment for three of its fighters it says were killed in a shootout with U.N. officers.
Tikoitoga did not say whether the rebels’ demands would be seriously considered. He said the UN had sent hostage negotiators to Syria to take over discussions from military leaders.
“Negotiations have moved up to another level with the professional negotiators now in place,” he said.
Tikoitoga also released the names of the 45 detained soldiers, who he said are led by Captain Savenaca Siwatibau Rabuka. He asked Fiji’s community and church leaders to help look after the families of the captive troops and asked the public to also offer support.
“I appeal to all Fijians that while we pray for our soldiers in Syria that we be sensitive to the families,” he said, adding “the UN has assured us they will use all of their available resources for the safe return of our soldiers.”