UN: Fijian peacekeepers ‘safe’

The UN says the 44 Fijian peacekeepers captured by Syrian rebels are safe and that it has been informed they were abducted by the rebels including fighters from Al Qaeda affiliate the al-Nusra Front for security reasons. A statement:

The United Nations has received assurances from credible sources that the 44 peacekeepers from the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) who were taken from their position on the morning of Thursday, 28 August, are safe and in good health

It says it has not had direct contact with the troops.

UNDOF has been informed that the intention behind those holding the peacekeepers was to remove them from an active battlefield to a safe area for their own protection