UNDOF, the observer force for the border between Syria and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, is quickly finding itself dragged into the civil war in the region, as al-Qaeda’s rebel faction Jabhat al-Nusra targets them.
44 UN troops from Fiji were captured by Nusra fighters, and the whereabouts of them is presently unknown. 75 other soldiers, from the Philippines, are the next target, and are holding out in a pair of bases under siege.
Nusra is demanding the troops hand over their weapons, though they have refused, believing that they too would be taken hostage by the rebels if they were disarmed.
The monitoring force is more heavily armed than you’d figure, and are planning to resist any attempt to take over their bases. The Nusra fighters seized the border crossing earlier in the week, and seems to be moving on the UN to consolidate their holdings in the area.
