adminspokesman Eduardo del Buey told reporters the UN Disengagement Force had “reported that earlier today approximately 30 armed fighters stopped and detained about 20 peacekeepers within the area of limitation.”
Diplomats in New York and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the peacekeepers were from the Philippines.
The Britain-based watchdog distributed two amateur videos that carried statements by the rebel Yarmuk Martyrs Brigade claiming the capture.
A man identified as brigade spokesman Abu Kaid al-Faleh said the peacekeepers would not be freed until Syrian regime forces pull out of the area.
“If they do not withdraw, these men (UN troops) will be treated as prisoners,” he said, and accused the UNDOF of working with the army to try to suppress the insurgency.
“The Syrian regime, the UN and the European countries are all collaborators with Israel,” he charged. The UN Security Council demanded that the rebels release the peacekeepers, and peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous said negotiations were being held with them. – AFP.
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