The United Nations chief has called for an immediate halt to all hostile acts and provocative actions to “avoid a new conflagration” in the Middle East, following reported exchanges of artillery fire over the Golan Heights.
Condemning recent hostile acts against United Nations peacekeepers in the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) area of operations, the Security Council today demanded that all groups other than UNDOF must abandon all Force positions and the Quneitra crossing point, and return the peacekeepers’ vehicles, weapons and other equipment.
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomed today the release of the 45 United Nations peacekeepers that had been forcibly taken on 28 August 2014 in the Golan and detained by armed elements.
The Security Council called again today for the immediate and unconditional release of 45 United Nations peacekeepers seized late last week by an armed group in the Golan, while the Organization’s top peacekeeping official said the UN is continuing to look at ways to enhance safety and security procedures in what has become a “very challenging situation.”
The United Nations said on Sunday that all 72 Filipino peacekeepers formerly surrounded by armed elements in two different locations in the Golan are now safe.
The United Nations said its peacekeepers in the Golan were attacked by armed elements on Saturday, as efforts continue to achieve the safe release of 44 blue helmets detained on Thursday.
The United Nations said on Friday that it has received assurances from credible sources that the 44 peacekeepers who were taken from their positions in the Golan yesterday are safe and in good health.
The Security Council today extended the nearly 40-year-old United Nations observer force in the Golan Heights for another six months, calling on all parties in the Syrian civil war to cease military actions in the area.
Members of the Security Council today expressed their concern at the resurgence of fighting in the Golan Heights and at the prospect of countries withdrawing their troops from the United Nations peacekeeping mission tasked with monitoring the longstanding ceasefire between Israel and Syria.
