44 Fijian soldiers held captive by rebels in Syria

Forty-four Fijian soldiers working as UN peacekeepers remained captive to a militant group in Syria today while 75 Philippine soldiers were in tense standoff with the rebels, according to the two Pacific nations.
Both nations remained hopeful the impasse could be resolved without bloodshed.
Fijian Commander Brig Gen Mosese Tikoitoga said he's been informed his soldiers are unharmed, although he hasn't been able to contact them directly. Philippines President Benigno Aquino III said that while the situation was tense, there was no reason to believe his troops faced immediate danger.
The events began yesterday morning on the Syrian side of the Golan Heights, an area divided between Israel and Syria. Tikoitoga said three vehicles filled with about 150 armed rebels converged on the Fijian camp at about 7:30 am. He said the rebels demanded the Fijian soldiers leave within 10 minutes and insisted they board the rebel vehicles. The Fijians were then taken by the rebels to an unknown location. He said he's been told they were later transported back to their original post.

"We are all doing our best to ensure the safety of (those) that are currently being held captive," Tikoitoga said.
Aquino, who was travelling south of Manila, told a crowd that the situation involving the Filipino peacekeepers was "stable."

Brig Gen Domingo Tutaan said the rebels surrounded two encampments about 4 kilometers apart occupied by Filipino peacekeepers and demanded that they give up their firearms, but the peacekeepers refused. "This resulted in a standoff," he said, reading from a statement.
However, "the potential for de-escalation is still positive," he said. The military leadership in the Philippines was in direct communication with the peacekeepers, he added.

"Our soldiers are prepared, trained and capable of dealing with this situation and will take risks to fulfill our commitment to international security and peace. The peacekeeping contingent has the right to defend its position and the units in line with United Nations protocols and rules of engagement," he said.
Tutaan said an English-speaking Fijian peacekeeper was sent by the rebels to tell the Filipinos to give up their weapons.
Col Roberto Ancan, commander of the Philippine military's Peacekeeping Operations Center, said the soldiers were armed with assault rifles, light machine guns and pistols and had enough ammunition to defend themselves.

"We have our rules of engagement wherein we can use deadly force in defense of United Nations facilities," he said.
Meanwhile, Fiji's commander asked people from his nation to pray for their soldiers. Fiji has one of the world's smaller militaries, comprising just 3,500 troops, of which 434 had been sent to assist with peacekeeping efforts in the Golan Heights.
The United Nations said initially that 43 Fijian soldiers had been detained and 81 Philippine peacekeepers had been effectively trapped after being restricted to their positions in the vicinity of Ar Ruwayhinah and Burayqah.