BICOM

The United Nations (UN) peacekeeping force on the Israel-Syria border yesterday evacuated its troops and equipment from Syria into Israel as fighting between Syrian factions intensified.

During the last several weeks, Syrian opposition forces captured the Quneitra border crossing with Israel and fierce fighting took place with Syrian government troops. The rebel forces included units from the Al-Nusra Front, giving the Al-Qaeda affiliated organisation a presence on Israel’s border. Al-Nusra forces subsequently forcibly seized 45 Fijian UN peacekeepers who were released only last week. This came after around 70 Filipino peacekeepers were also trapped in the area by Al-Nusra fighters. They eventually escaped and are thought to have made their way over the Israeli border with support from the IDF.

However, the situation has apparently deteriorated even further during recent days, prompting the UN to remove its presence from the Syrian side of the border altogether. A UN statement said, “Armed groups have made advances in the area of UNDOF [United Nations Disengagement Observer Force] positions, posing a direct threat to the safety and security of the UN Peacekeepers.” Reuters quoted a source saying “Staff in UN positions 10, 16, 31 and 37, as well as Camp Faouar on the (Syrian) side are being relocated.” According to the Wall St Journal, Israel’s military confirmed that UN forces had redeployed into Israel-controlled territory on the Golan Heights.

UN Spokesman Farhan Haq said that the move was temporary and that the UN peacekeepers would continue to fulfil their mission from positions on the Israeli side of the border and from their base in Damascus. However, yesterday’s redeployment will raise further questions over the future of the UNDOF mission, which has been in place since 1974, tasked with preserving the ceasefire arrangement agreed between Israel and Syria at the end of the Yom Kippur War. Due to the increasing danger in Syria, Austria and Croatia pulled their forces from the mission last year, while the Philippines says its troops will return home in October.