That was a great escape by the Filipinos.
September 1, 2014 at 1:00 am
Filipino troops slip past Syrian rebels in Golan Heights
Members of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force watch the Syrian side of the Golan Heights. Fighting between Syrian government troops and opposition forces spilled into the region over the weekend. (Photos by Menahem Kahana / Getty Images)
Beirut— Under cover of darkness, 40 Filipino peacekeepers escaped their besieged outpost in the Golan Heights after a seven-hour gunbattle with Syrian rebels, Philippine officials said Sunday. Al-Qaida-linked insurgents still hold captive 45 Fijian troops.
The getaway, combined with the departure of another entrapped group of Filipino troops, marked a major step forward in a crisis that erupted on Thursday when Syrian rebels began targeting the peacekeeping forces. The United Nations 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, on the de facto border between Syrian- and Israeli-controlled parts of the Golan Heights, on Wednesday. Thursday, insurgents from the al-Qaida-affiliated Nusra Front seized the Fijian peacekeepers and surrounded their Filipino colleagues, demanding they surrender.
The Filipinos, occupying two U.N. encampments, refused and fought the rebels Saturday. The first group of 35 peacekeepers was successfully escorted out of a U.N. encampment in Breiqa by Irish and Filipino forces on board armored vehicles.
From The Detroit News: Filipino troops slip past Syrian rebels in Golan Heights The Detroit News
September 1, 2014 at 1:00 am
Filipino troops slip past Syrian rebels in Golan Heights
- Jim Gomez and Ryan Lucas
- Associated Press
- 1 Comments
Members of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force watch the Syrian side of the Golan Heights. Fighting between Syrian government troops and opposition forces spilled into the region over the weekend. (Photos by Menahem Kahana / Getty Images)
Beirut— Under cover of darkness, 40 Filipino peacekeepers escaped their besieged outpost in the Golan Heights after a seven-hour gunbattle with Syrian rebels, Philippine officials said Sunday. Al-Qaida-linked insurgents still hold captive 45 Fijian troops.
The getaway, combined with the departure of another entrapped group of Filipino troops, marked a major step forward in a crisis that erupted on Thursday when Syrian rebels began targeting the peacekeeping forces. The United Nations 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, on the de facto border between Syrian- and Israeli-controlled parts of the Golan Heights, on Wednesday. Thursday, insurgents from the al-Qaida-affiliated Nusra Front seized the Fijian peacekeepers and surrounded their Filipino colleagues, demanding they surrender.
The Filipinos, occupying two U.N. encampments, refused and fought the rebels Saturday. The first group of 35 peacekeepers was successfully escorted out of a U.N. encampment in Breiqa by Irish and Filipino forces on board armored vehicles.
From The Detroit News: Filipino troops slip past Syrian rebels in Golan Heights The Detroit News
