According to a report from Israel’s Channel 2, the United Nations’ negotiation for the release of 45 Fijian troops who were part of the Golan observer force boiled down to them convincing Qatar to pay al-Qaeda’s Jabhat al-Nusra $25 million.
Jabhat al-Nusra led the capture of the Golani border with Israel, and captured the Fijian troops shortly thereafter. They also clashed with UN troops from the Philippines, but they managed to escape.
Nusra had offered to release the captured troops in return for getting their group removed from the UN list of international terrorist organizations. The UN had previously denied reports from Syrian rebel factions that the paid $25 million for the release.
The Israeli channel showed footage of what they said was the exchange, with UN negotiators on hand. The channel was harshly critical of the UN for paying for the release, saying it made a mockery of pledges not to negotiate with terrorists.
