75 Philippine U.N. peacekeepers defy Syria rebels after 43 Fijians seized

[WuMaoCleverbot]

Syria Islamists say Filipino UN troops were freed, but Fijians still held
Nusra Front says it released 35 Filipino peacekeepers, contradicting reports that the men had escaped under cover of darkness; group says will free Fijians in return for humanitarian aid.
By Jack Khoury and The Associated Press | Aug. 31, 2014 | 11:41 PM |

The radical Islamist group Nusra Front said on Sunday night that it had released some 35 United Nations peacekeepers who it had besieged in their outpost on the Golan Heights.

The peacekeepers reached a UN base on the Israeli side of the border overnight.

The Nusra statement contradicted numerous other reports that the peacekeepers, all from the Philippines, had managed to escape the post under the cover of darkness.

Another 44 peacekeepers from Fiji are still being held captive. The Nusra Front said they would only be released in return for the provision of humanitarian aid to a Syrian suburb under siege by the Syrian regime.

The organization said that the UN had disappointed Sunni Muslims by passing resolutions favoring the regime of Bashar Assad and facilitating attacks on rebel groups under the umbrella of the war against terror.

Syrian opposition groups say that the rebel forces in the Golan area will be supplemented over the next few days by fresh troops. The Syrian Army is also expected to be reinforced in the area, possibly by a Hezbollah contingent according to unconfirmed reports from Lebanon.

The escape or release of the Filipino troops, following the release of another Filipino contingent a day earlier, marked a major step forward in a crisis that erupted on Thursday when Syrian rebels began targeting the peacekeeping forces.

The UN Security Council has condemned the assaults on the international troops monitoring the Syrian-Israeli frontier and has demanded the unconditional release of those still in captivity.

The crisis began after Syrian rebels overran the Quneitra crossing between the Israeli and Syrian areas of the Golan Heights on Wednesday. A day later, insurgents from the al-Qaida-affiliated Nusra Front seized the Fijian peacekeepers and surrounded their Filipino colleagues, demanding they surrender.

The Filipinos, occupying two UN encampments, refused and fought the rebels Saturday. The first group of 35 peacekeepers was then successfully escorted out of a UN encampment in Breiqa by Irish and Filipino forces on board armored vehicles.

The remaining 40 peacekeepers were besieged at the second encampment, called Rwihana, by more than 100 gunmen, who rammed the camp's gates with their trucks and fired mortar rounds. The Filipinos returned fire in self-defense, Philippine military officials said.

At one point, Syrian government forces fired artillery rounds from a distance to prevent the Filipino peacekeepers from being overwhelmed, said Col. Roberto Ancan, a Philippine military official who helped monitor the tense standoff from the Philippine capital, Manila, and mobilize support for the besieged troops.

"Although they were surrounded and outnumbered, they held their ground for seven hours," Philippine military chief Gen. Gregorio Pio Catapang said, adding that there were no Filipino casualties. "We commend our soldiers for exhibiting resolve even while under heavy fire."

As night fell and a cease-fire took hold, the 40 Filipinos fled with their weapons, traveling across rough terrain for nearly two hours before meeting up with other UN forces, who escorted them to safety early Sunday, Philippine officials said.
"We may call it the greatest escape," Catapang told reporters in Manila.

The Syrian and Israeli governments, along with the United States and Qatar, provided support, the Philippine military said without elaborating.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon spoke with the Prime Minister of Fiji by telephone Sunday, and promised that the United Nations was "doing its utmost to obtain the unconditional and immediate release" of the Fijian peacekeepers, Ban's office said.

The Nusra Front confirmed that it had seized the Fijians. In a statement posted online, the group published a photo showing what it said were the captured Fijians in their military uniforms along with 45 identification cards. The group said the men "are in a safe place and in good health, and everything they need in terms of food and medicine is given to them."

It was unclear why the number of detained peacekeepers differed from the 44 figure provided by the UN.

Syria Islamists say Filipino UN troops were freed, but Fijians still held - Diplomacy and Defense Israel News | Haaretz

 

[kurup]

UN body backs Indian officer in stand-off with Philippines

The United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) has come out in support of an Indian Lt General saying he acted as per the rule book, a day after a Filipino officer accused him of endangering the safety of peacekeeping troops from Philippines during a stand-off with Syrian rebels over the last weekend.

The Chief of Staff of the UNDOF in Syria, an official from Philippines, had resigned citing differences in handling the Golan Heights crisis with force commander Indian Lt General Iqbal Singh Singha alleging that “the UNDOF commander wanted to save the Fijians at the expense of the Filipinos”.

The Philippines military has reportedly sought probe against Lt Gen Singha pertaining to standoff at the Golan Heights wherein 44 Fijian peacekeepers of the UNDOF were abducted by one al Nusra, a Syrian rebel group. The Filipino officer said that Singha had ordered the Filipino peacekeepers in the UNDOF to “lay down their weapons” to ensure safety of the Fijian peacekeepers.

Backing the Indian official, the UN mission in a statement said, “Philippines bypassed the chain of command and the permanent representative of Philippines in UN , New York, COAS, Philippines and the erstwhile Force Commander of UNDOF, Maj General (Retired) Natalio Ecarma III (presently deputy minister in Philippines), adversely interfered in the decision making mechanics of UNDOF, jeopardising the safety of own and Fijian troops.”

“The field commander was in constant touch with the Position commanders directly and was appreciating their brave stand and exhorted them to stay calm and not aggravate the situation as efforts were ongoing for their safe passage .It may be recalled that on four occasions in the past the FC had successfully handled similar situations,” it said.

According to the note, the COS of the mission — the Filipino officer who resigned — took orders from “Manila and acted with myopic focus only on the contingent, compromising the mission planning to ensure safety of all peacekeepers irrespective of contingents”.

“These interference further deteriorated the operational capability of the Philippines contingent which after the announcement of their withdrawal from the mission in the third week of August 14, were losing interest and displayed considerable drop in performance,” it stated.

UN body backs Indian officer in stand-off with Philippines | The Indian Express

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The official twitter account of UN Peacekeeping (verified by Twitter) published this statement:

https://twitter.com/x/status/507247856835903488

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U.N. denies Golan peacekeepers ordered to hand arms to Syria rebels

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The U.N. peacekeeping chief strongly denied on Wednesday allegations from the Philippines' army chief that Filipino peacekeepers in the Golan Heights were ordered to surrender their weapons to Islamist militants who had trapped them.

Filipino army chief General Gregorio Catapang said his soldiers had defended themselves against Islamist rebels last weekend in defiance of an order from their U.N. force commander to surrender their weapons, a move that would be highly controversial in the six-nation, blue-helmeted force.


The U.N.'s under-secretary-general for peacekeeping, Herve Ladsous, denied that any such order was given.


The back-and-forth underlines a rise in tensions in the U.N. peacekeeping force following weekend skirmishes with Islamist militants in Israeli-controlled territory on Syria's southeastern border.


Islamist fighters battling the Syrian army overran last week a crossing point in the line that has separated Israelis from Syrians in the Golan Heights since a 1973 war, the most recent escalation of Syria's civil war, now in its fourth year.


The fighters then turned against U.N. blue helmets from a peacekeeping force that has patrolled the ceasefire line since 1974. After 45 Fijians were captured on Thursday, 72 Filipinos were besieged at two other locations for two days by militants before they escaped.


The militants, believed to be part of an al-Qaeda-linked group known as Nusra Front, are still holding the 45 Fijian members of the United Nations' UNDOF Golan Heights force.

Catapang said that at one point while the Filipinos were trapped, UNDOF Force Commander General Iqbal Singh Singha of India ordered the soldiers to surrender their arms to prevent harm from befalling the captured Fijians.


Asked what order was given to the Filipinos, Ladsous replied, "Never to hand over weapons."

The order was simply "not to shoot," he said.


One U.N. official told Reuters that no force commander would order his troops to hand over weapons to rebels. If that were to happen, the official said, the commander would "be out of a job" since countries that supply weapons and materiel to the force would be reluctant to re-supply the mission.

Several Security Council diplomats said the issue of what orders might have been given was discussed on Wednesday in a closed-door meeting of the 15-nation body.


In that meeting, Ladsous expressed full support for Singha, diplomats who were present told Reuters. Ladsous later told reporters that Singha had "exercised good sound judgment all along" during the crisis.


Ladsous said the United Nations had not confirmed that the militants who attacked the Filipinos and are holding the Fijians belong to Nusra Front.

UNDOF troops were kidnapped twice last year and in both cases were released unharmed.

U.N. denies Golan peacekeepers ordered to hand arms to Syria rebels | World News | Reuters.com

 

[WuMaoCleverbot]

PH and Fiji in Golan: One order, different outcomes
Carmela Fonbuena
Published 1:31 PM, Sep 05, 2014
Updated 8:58 PM, Sep 05, 2014


Last week, Filipino and Fijian peacekeepers were given the same order to surrender their weapons to Syrian rebels. Who made the right choice?

MANILA, Philippines – Peacekeeping forces from two countries were caught in a similar situation, and were given the same order by their overall commander. Each took a different path – one defied it and the other followed – leading to different outcomes.

Fiji’s Army Chief Brigadier General Mosese Tikoitoga revealed in various interviews that the detained 45 Fijian peacekeepers, in fact, surrendered to the Syrian rebels following the orders of United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) Commander Lieutenant General Iqbal Singha, based on various reports in Fiji.

"At no stage in an operation would I expect any of my officers not to follow the decisions of the first commander....The Filipinos chose to do so and the Philippines government has supported them for having chosen that path," Tikoitoga said in new interviewdefending the surrender. The situation of the Fijians was being compared to the Filipinos who were able to escape.

“We cannot criticize them for it, nor can we follow the decision they have made. We live by our own ethos of following command," Tikoitoga added.

Forty Filipinos in the besieged UN facility Position 68 disobeyed Singha's orders to surrender their weapons and executed an unauthorized escape mission after a 7-hour firefight with rebels. (READ: Inside Filipino troops' 'greatest escape' in Golan)

Philippine military chief General Gregorio Catapang Jr said there was no guarantee that the Syrian rebels – among them members of the Al-Qaeda affiliate in Syria, the Al-Nusra Front – will not also take them hostage after they surrender their firearms.

While Filipinos celebrate the daring escape of their soldiers in the middle of the night when the rebels were asleep, Singha is telling Indian media that the move was an "act of cowardice."

"The higher UN echelon as well as the Indian Army agrees with me that the decision was correct. It is an act of cowardice to desert posts especially when a delicate ceasefire was in place....They broke the chain of command and UN orders," Singha was quoted in various Indian news outlets.

Singha said the Filipinos also endangered the lives of the 45 Fijian peacekeepers who were taken hostage by the Syrian rebels.

"The non-professional actions of the Filipino troops have endangered the lives of the Fijian soldiers. They have defied orders at a time when we had negotiated a ceasefire with the rebels to ensure that all troops in the conflict area could exit," Singha added.

The Philippine military has questioned Singha for using the Filipinos as "sacrificial pawns" to save the Fijians. Catapang said Singha should have extracted the Filipinos first, and the Philippine peacekeepers would later help rescue the Fijians.

Risks of surrender

Caught in the middle of the blame game is the UN, which has backed Singha and denied there was an order to for the Filipinos to surrender their weapons. UN Under Secretary for Peacekeeping Operations Herves Ladsous said the order was “not to shoot.”

The Philippines said Singha verbally issued the order to surrender the weapons and supposedly refused to put his order in writing. The new interviews with Singha and Tikoitoga back the narration of the Filipinos, however.

Surrendering weapons to rebels is risky, as UN experience shows.

In 1993, 10 Belgian peacekeepers who surrendered to the ethnic Hutu extremists in Rwanda were executed. They were members of UNAMIR, the UN Assistance for Rwanda. The Hutu militia is behind a genocide of about 800,000 people of the minority Tutsi community.

The UN peacekeepers' role in Rwanda during the genocide was questioned as the world body was accused of allowing the genocide by refusing to send in more troops to control the situation. Most of the UNAMIR troops were pulled out after the execution of the peacekeepers.

Singha, however, was confident of the talks with the Syrian rebels. A negotiated ceasefire would supposedly ensure that all troops could exit the conflict area. But the Filipinos claimed they monitored the rebels massing up after the 7-hour firefight and believed they would be "massacred" if they did not escape.

The crisis in Golan that started at 10 am Thursday, August 28, enters Week 2. The UN continues to demand for the unconditional release of the Fijian peacekeepers. Tikoitoga said there’s been a “lull” in the negotiation for their release, however.

The Al-Nusra Front earlier issued 3 demands: its deletion from the the UN terrorist list, compensation for 3 colleagues killed in firefights against peacekeepers, and humanitarian assistance for a town it dominates.

It is not clear if the 3 Syrian rebels were killed during the firefight with Filipinos. Syrian government forces also provided fire support to prevent the rebels from closing in the UN facility.

Peacekeeping history

Fiji started deploying to Golan last year to replace troops of Croatia and Japan, which already decided to pull out as the internal conflict in Syria continues to deteriorate. Peacekeepers in Golan are tasked to monitor the 1974 ceasefire between Israel and Syria

While the Fijians are new in Golan, they have a long experience in peacekeeping operations in the "Middle East, notably with UNIFIL in Lebanon, with UNAMI in Iraq, and with the Multinational Force in Sinai," according to the Fiji government.

The Philippines has been deploying to Golan since 2009 and has occupied high-level positions in the UNDOF Command.

Singha in fact succeeded Filipino Natalio Ecarma III, now a defense undersecretary who was present in the war room in Manila that approved movements of the Filipino troops in Golan.

Before the standoff, the Philippines decided to pull out the peacekeepers when their tour of duty ends in October. – Rappler.com

PH and Fiji in Golan: One order, different outcomes

 

[Pinoy]

UN body backs Indian officer in stand-off with Philippines
Backing the Indian official, the UN mission in a statement said, “Philippines bypassed the chain of command and the permanent representative of Philippines in UN , New York, COAS, Philippines and the erstwhile Force Commander of UNDOF, Maj General (Retired) Natalio Ecarma III (presently deputy minister in Philippines), adversely interfered in the decision making mechanics of UNDOF, jeopardising the safety of own and Fijian troops.”

In the first place who placed the lives of the Fijians at risk? If Lt. Gen. Singha asked them to defend themselves from these terrorist, they will have much less chance of getting captured. Now that's what we should call a cowardly order. Also, he should not treat those terrorist as equals and worthy of their words. They are savages.


Al-Nusra Front threatens to try UN Fijian peacekeepers
BY LAZAR BERMAN
September 5, 2014

Al-Qaeda affiliate says troops captured on Syrian Golan Heights will face trial according to Sharia law unless demands are met

Undated image, attached in a statement released on August 30, 2014, on the Hanin Network website, a militant website, shows Fijian UN peacekeepers who were seized by the Nusra Front on August 28, 2014, in the Golan Heights buffer zone between Syria and Israel. (photo credit: AP/Hanin Network)​

Syrian al-Qaeda branch al-Nusra Front threatened to try 45 UN peacekeepers from Fiji abducted last week in the Golan Heights

According to the London-based daily Asharq al-Awsat, the jihadist group said it would try the soldiers according to Sharia law.

The report added that there has been no progress in talks to release the Fijians.

On Wednesday, the UN Security Council called on “countries with influence” to press the al-Qaeda-linked insurgents to release the peacekeepers.

A press statement approved by all 15 council members, after a briefing by UN peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous, again demanded the immediate and unconditional release of the Fijian peacekeepers.

Heavy clashes have raged in the Golan Heights since Syrian rebels captured a border crossing between Syria and Israel near the abandoned town of Quneitra last Wednesday.

Ladsous told reporters the peacekeepers have shown “steadfastness and courage” and said the UN is working to obtain the swift and unconditional release of the Fijians.

“We are sparing no effort to obtain the release of the detained peacekeepers,” he said, but gave no details, stressing the importance of “discretion.”

Fiji commander Brig. Gen. Mosese Tikoitoga said Tuesday that the Nusra Front has made three demands for the release of the peacekeepers: It wants to be taken off the UN terrorist list; it demands that humanitarian aid be delivered to parts of the Syrian capital of Damascus; and it calls for compensation for three of its fighters who, it claims, were killed in a shootout with UN officers.

The Nusra Front accused the UN of doing nothing to help the Syrian people since the uprising against President Bashar Assad began in March 2011. It said the Fijians were seized in retaliation for the UN’s ignoring “the daily shedding of the Muslims’ blood in Syria” and even colluding with Assad’s army “to facilitate its movement to strike the vulnerable Muslims” through a buffer zone in the Golan Heights.

UNDOF was established in May 1974 following intensified firing on the Israel-Syria border after the 1973 Arab-Israeli war. Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria in 1967, and Syria has campaigned for decades for return of the land. For nearly four decades, the UN monitors helped enforce a stable truce between Israel and Syria, but the Golan Heights has increasingly become a battlefield in the more than three-year-old Syrian conflict.

The mission currently has troops from six countries: Fiji, India, Ireland, Nepal, Netherlands and the Philippines. A number of countries have withdrawn their peacekeepers due to the escalating violence.

AP contributed to this report.

Read more: Al-Nusra Front threatens to try UN Fijian peacekeepers | The Times of Israel Al-Nusra Front threatens to try UN Fijian peacekeepers | The Times of Israel

 

[WuMaoCleverbot]

So this Indian guy is telling a lie when he claimed the Fiji troops are already freed???

Post#37

errr.... The Fijian troops are free. Without the loss of ANY lives.

BTW even an animal will fight back when attacked. That is not courage. Its self defence.

Courage is when you save someone else's life instead of your own.

Philippine military seeks probe against Indian commander | Page 3

 

[Zero_wing]

It's a sepoy mutiny against General Singha.

Racist all the way

 

[Sahasranama]

So this Indian guy is telling a lie when he claimed the Fiji troops are already freed???
Philippine military seeks probe against Indian commander | Page 3

There was an earlier report which said the Fijians were released. The latest report says they were not. I can only comment on what the papers report, same as you.

 

[nvKyleBrown]

This is looking very bad for Singha. A few things need to be cleared up, as the reports are conflicting.

1) What exact orders did he give to the Fijians? Some account report they were ordered to surrender.
2) What exact orders did he give to the Filippinos? There is a direct conflict here in the reporting - Singha says he ordered them not to fire, the Filippinos say he ordered them to surrender. I am not sure what he expect to happen if they did not fire - then a single kid with an AK could "overrun" them, as they are effectively unable to mount any resistance whatsoever.

At the moment, he looks like he is colluding with Al-Nusra. He has handed them hostages, and tried to hand them more.

 

[Cossack25A1]

Hmm, retreating when you are low on ammo because you have to act in self-defense is not cowardice but a logical move...but I guess some people here would prefer to pull a Leonidas act in the Golan Heights..

 

[WuMaoCleverbot]

Fiji army chief defends troops surrender
Thursday 4 Sep 2014 9:33 p.m.

Fiji's army chief has dismissed a "sick" suggestion the Pacific island's Muslim minority will face a backlash if 45 UN peacekeepers taken hostage by Islamic rebels in the Golan Heights are harmed.

Brigadier General Mosese Tikoitoga also defended the action of his troops in surrendering to al-Qaeda-linked Al-Nusra Front rebels, even though a contingent of 75 Filipino peacekeepers who defied an order to lay down their weapons all escaped unscathed.

Tikoitoga, speaking to reporters in Suva just hours after the UN Security Council demanded the Fijians' immediate release, said the location of the Blue Helmets was still unknown.

He also revealed that talks with their captors had hit a "lull", but said specialised UN negotiators flown in from New York to deal with the crisis had told him this was normal in a hostage situation.

"They [the rebels] do not establish contact so that they can regain the initiative on negotiations," he said.

"But these are [just] tactics they use and I hope that we will resume discussions soon and we can get them back on the line."

The Islamic fighters have made at least three demands, including that the Al-Nusra Front be removed from the UN's list of terrorist organisations.

Former Fiji prime minister Sitiveni Rabuka told Radio New Zealand yesterday that Fiji's Muslim community, which numbers about 60,000 in an overall population of 900,000, could face retaliation if the islanders serving with the UN were harmed.

"If anything should happen to the 45 then the unsuspecting and probably undeserving people who will bear the brunt of the feelings of the people could be the Muslim civil society and community in Fiji," he said.

Tikoitoga said the Fiji military was committed to treating all citizens equally and accused Rabuka of inflaming ethnic tensions.

"It's very irresponsible and I think it's closing in on inciting violence in Fiji. We should condemn it ... it only shows the sick attitude of that individual," he said.

"The RFMF [military] will look after all Fijians and we don't hold anything against any Fijians for what's happening. This is a time we should all stand together, it is not the time to start pointing fingers at each other, especially internally."

Asked why his men surrendered, Tikoitoga said they were following a direct order from the commander of the UN Disengagement Observer Force.

"At no stage in an operation would I expect any of my officers not to follow the decisions of the first commander," he said. "The Filipinos chose to do so and the Philippines government have supported them for having chosen that path.

"We cannot criticise them for it, nor can we follow the decision they have made, we live by our own ethos of following command."

He said officers on the ground had to make a snap decision in a fraught situation.

Fiji army chief defends troops surrender | World | 3 News

 

[WuMaoCleverbot]

No reason to doubt gallantry of Pinoy peacekeepers – Palace
By Aurea Calica (The Philippine Star) | Updated September 7, 2014 - 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines - They are heroes and there is no reason to doubt the gallantry of the Filipino peacekeepers in the Golan Heights despite criticisms from their commander over their escape following a firefight with Syrian rebels, Malacañang said yesterday.

“The Filipino peacekeepers who kept the Syrian rebels at bay for seven hours, their determined resolve not to surrender despite being put in harm’s way, show the true courage and steeled discipline of the Filipino soldiers. They deserve a heroes’ welcome,” presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said.

United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) Commander Lt. Gen. Iqbal Singha assailed the Filipino troops for escaping while a separate group of Fijian peacekeepers were still being held by the Syrian rebels, saying it was an act of cowardice and disobedience to the chain of command.

Armed Forces chief General Gregorio Pio Catapang disclosed they had submitted a report on the incident to President Aquino.

“For someone fighting and engaging the enemy for seven hours – that can hardly be called cowardice,” Catapang said.

Lacierda said the Filipino soldiers deserved to be commended.


“Whatever Gen. (Iqbal) Singha said, we leave it to the Department of Foreign Affairs to address those concerns. And the UN being an international institution, we would rather let the diplomatic channels address those statements,” he said.

Senate to honor Pinoy soldiers

The Filipino peacekeepers who defied orders for them to surrender while fighting it out with Syrian rebels would be commended by the Senate for their heroism and courage.

Senators Aquilino Pimentel III and Teofisto Guingona III joined Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV in seeking to commend the Filipino peacekeepers deployed by the UN to the Golan Heights for refusing to negotiate with terrorists and managing to get out alive despite being surrounded by the rebels.

Pimentel said the Filipino soldiers should be awarded for holding the line in spite of orders for them to surrender to the Syrian rebels.

Aside from commendation, he said they also deserve cash incentives and promotions as provided for under the rules of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

“Let us bring our soldiers home soon,” Pimentel said.

He urged the government to review its peacekeeping mission with the UN because of the escalation of tension and violence in Syria, where local rebels are fighting the regime of President Bashar al-Assad in a bloody civil war.

“While we are under obligation to respect our commitments to the UN, it is also our duty to ensure that risks to the lives of our troops are kept to the minimum,” Pimentel said.

Guingona has filed a resolution commending the Filipino peacekeepers for their courage and bravery.

“These soldiers have exhibited extraordinary valor above and beyond the call of duty. They have demonstrated once again that Filipinos are among the bravest peacekeepers in the world,” he said.

Guingona cited the Filipino soldiers for holding their ground during a seven-hour firefight with the Syrian rebels.

“It must have been a harrowing scenario. Yet they have shown incredible courage and bravery amid grave danger and conflict. They are true heroes,” he said.

During the confirmation hearing of Catapang last Wednesday, Trillanes said that he intends to commend the Filipino peacekeepers deployed in the Golan Heights.

He asked the AFP chief to grant promotion to the Filipino troops. – With Marvin Sy

No reason to doubt gallantry of Pinoy peacekeepers – Palace | Headlines, News, The Philippine Star | philstar.com

 

[WuMaoCleverbot]

Head of Phl troops in Golan arrives
By Jaime Laude (The Philippine Star) | Updated September 11, 2014 - 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines - The most senior Filipino military commander of the country’s peacekeeping contingent in the Golan Heights returned to Manila yesterday afternoon.

Col. James Ezra Enriquez, on leave as chief of staff of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) under the command of Indian Lt. Gen. Iqbal Singh Singha, arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal I in a blue polo shirt and a blue cap – the color of the UN troops.

Maj. Gen. Domingo Tutaan confirmed Enriquez’s return as he assured military officials that all Filipino troops in Golan Heights are safe and well.

“Enriquez requested to be repatriated. He will report to the chief of staff (Gen. Gregorio Pio Catapang) first before we can make any statement,” Tutaan said.

Enriquez resigned from his post as UNDOF’s chief of staff due to disagreements with Singha, the UN Force commander in the Golan Heights, over his handling of the three-day standoff involving Filipino peacekeepers whose UN post at position 68 was surrounded by Syrian rebels.

Singha wanted the 40 Filipino peacekeepers to surrender their weapons to the rebels to secure the release of 43 Fijians earlier abducted by the al-Qaeda-linked Al-Nusra rebels.

However, Enriquez, taking guidance from top defense and military leadership at home base, defied the Indian officer’s order.

Refusing to lay down their weapons, Filipinos peacekeepers then engaged the rebels in a seven-hour firefight and later escaped from their post under cover of darkness.

Singha described the action taken by the Filipino peacekeepers as unprofessional for defying his order and called them cowards for abandoning their post.

Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin and Catapang defended Enriquez and his men, saying that had the Filipino soldiers obeyed Singha’s order, the troops would have been captured by the rebels just like their Fijian counterparts, further complicating the security situation on the ground.

“Is fighting the enemies for seven hours an act of cowardice?” Catapang said.

Head of Phl troops in Golan arrives | Headlines, News, The Philippine Star | philstar.com

 

[Ayan81]

What i don't get is how did those fijians got captured, are they in a convoy unarmed and got stoped or are they already in there base when they got captured. the news only tells us the part that the fijians are already held hostage and demanding the filipinos to give up their firearms and surrender.


“Never Give Up Your Gun.” Case in Point. | WeaponsMan

one of the comments says:
--- "You never surrender if you have the means to resist. A commander that orders the surrender of a combat capable unit is issuing an unlawful order and it is to be ignored and if in the field, he is to be arrested/relieved of command."---

 

[WuMaoCleverbot]

Al Jazeera says U.N. peacekeepers released in Golan
DUBAI Thu Sep 11, 2014 10:15am BST

(Reuters) - Al Jazeera television said on Thursday the al Qaeda-backed Nusra Front group released U.N. peacekeepers it seized two weeks ago on the Golan Heights.

The group on Wednesday posted a video on its Twitter and YouTube accounts in which the hostages, from the South Pacific nation of Fiji, said they expected to be freed soon.

The head of Fiji's army said on Wednesday the Islamist militant group had dropped all of its demands to free the 45 hostages, but at least slightly back-pedalled later in the day as the situation appeared to deteriorate.

It was unclear whether the video, carried by the SITE monitoring service, was made before or after the confusion surrounding those comments, but a U.N. source earlier told Reuters that the militants had insisted on such a video as a condition for the peacekeepers' release.

“By the way, we are all safe and alive, and we thank Jabhat al-Nusra for keeping us safe and keeping us alive. I'd like to assure you that we have not been harmed in any way," one hostage, who was not identified, said, using the Nusra Front's full name.

"We understand that with the limited resources that they have, they have provided the best for us and we truly appreciate it and we thank them. We are thankful that Jabhat al-Nusra has kept its word and that we will be going home."

Syria's three-year civil war reached the frontier with Israeli-controlled territory last month when Islamist fighters overran a crossing point in the line that has separated Israelis from Syrians in the Golan Heights since a 1973 war.

The fighters then turned on the U.N. blue helmets from a peacekeeping force that has patrolled the ceasefire line for 40 years. After the Fijians were captured, more than 70 Filipinos spent two days besieged at two locations before reaching safety.

The Nusra Front had demanded compensation for fighters killed during the confrontation, humanitarian assistance for its supporters and its removal from the U.N. list of terrorist organisations.

Qatar, one country in the Middle East thought by the United States to have influence with the Islamist militant group, said Fiji had formally requested its assistance in freeing the hostages.

U.S. officials have said that Qatar played a critical role in persuading the Nusra Front to free American journalist Peter Theo Curtis last month, whom the front had been holding hostage since 2012.

Since independence from Britain in 1970, Fiji has sent more soldiers on U.N. peacekeeping missions than any other nation, on a per capita basis, which provides its stalled economywith much-needed hard currency and helps to bolster its global standing.

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/09/11/uk-syria-crisis-fiji-idUKKBN0H60CP20140911?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews

 

[WuMaoCleverbot]

Fijian peacekeepers held in Syria set free — report
No confirmation of claim; news comes day after reports of imminent release were later retracted
BY TIMES OF ISRAEL STAFF September 11, 2014, 11:40 am


Their release would mark the end of a contentious period of negotiations, during which al-Nusra Front threatened that if the international community did not meet its demands, the Fijians would be tried under Sharia law.

There was no other confirmation of the release. A person who answered the phone at the headquarters of UNDOF, the peacekeeping force deployed between Israel and Syria, told The Times of Israel he did not know anything about the report.

It is unclear as of yet whether the Nusra Front received anything in exchange for the Fijian troops. On Wednesday Fiji announced that the hostages would soon be released unconditionally, but later retracted the statement.

On Thursday, the group released a video showing the 45 peacekeepers, who said they were happy and being taken care of.

In exchange for the Fijians’ release, Nusra Front had demanded removal of the group from the UN terrorist list, the delivery of humanitarian aid to parts of the Syrian capital of Damascus, and compensation for three of its fighters who, it claims, were killed in a shootout with UN officers.

The capture of the 45 came during heavy fighting between rebels groups and Syrian regulars around the Quneitra crossing, the sole transfer point between Israel and Syria. Dozens of other peacekeepers from the Philippines managed to escape the group during a firefight.

The Nusra Front has accused the UN of doing nothing to help the Syrian people since the uprising against President Bashar Assad began in March 2011. It said the Fijians were seized in retaliation for the UN’s ignoring “the daily shedding of the Muslims’ blood in Syria” and even colluding with Assad’s army “to facilitate its movement to strike the vulnerable Muslims” through a buffer zone in the Golan Heights.

Fijian peacekeepers held in Syria set free -- report | The Times of Israel