A group of UN peacekeepers, who were captured by the Syrian opposition group, the al-Nusra Front, have been released.
According to a statement by the office of UN Secretary general Ban Ki-moon, the 45 Fijian peacekeepers were handed to UN Disengagement Observer Force (Undof) personnel on Thursday and were “in good condition”.
The troops were captured while on patrol in the Golan Heights last month, during clashes between rebels and the Syrian government.
In a video posted online, al-Nusra said it sought a prisoner exchange and aid deliveries, but denied claims by Fijian authorities that it also demanded to be removed from the UN terror list.
The rebels said they had given the Undof troops assurances that they would not be harmed, and that they had honoured those assurances.