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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran | |
| Filipino Force Defied UN Commander During Syrian Golan Crisis | |
| 2014-09-02 | |
[Ynet] Philippine military says UN peacekeeping commander on Heights should face investigation for asking troops to surrender to rebels.
Gen. Gregorio Pio Catapang said he advised the 40 Filipino peacekeepers not to lay down their arms, and they defied the UN peacekeeping commander's order. Instead, they staged a daring escape from the Golan camp over the weekend, ending a tense, days-long standoff. The disagreement is another blow to a UN peacekeeping mission that has been threatened by an escalation of violence in a buffer zone it has been guarding between Israel and Syria. A number of countries have withdrawn their troops from the peacekeeping force due to rising rebel attacks. Forty-five Fijian peacekeepers who surrendered their firearms to the rebels last week are still being held by the al-Qaeda-linked Death Eaters. The commander of the United Nations ...the Oyster Bay money pit... Disengagement Observer Force, or UNDOF, which supervises the peacekeeping mission in Golan, was overseeing talks with the Syrian rebels to secure the freedom of the Fijians. However, there's more than one way to skin a cat... Catapang said he would not agree to any resolution of the hostage crisis that would put Filipino troops in grave danger. When the besieged Filipino troops sought his advice after they were ordered to lay down their arms as part of an arrangement with the rebels to secure the Fijians' release, Catapang said he asked them to defy the order. "I told them not to follow the order because that is a violation of our regulation, that we do not surrender our firearms, and, at the same time, there is no assurance that you will be safe after you give your firearms," Catapang said. "Our stand is, we will not allow our soldiers to become sacrificial pawns in order to save the Fijians," Catapang told The News Agency that Dare Not be Named. "They should look for other ways and means to save the Fijians." UNDOF did not immediately reply to a request for comment. Catapang said an investigation would allow the UNDOF commander to explain his side and the Philippine military to explain why it advised the Filipino peacekeepers to defy his order. Due to the differences over the handling of the Golan crisis, Catapang said he asked a Filipino military officer playing a key role in UNDOF to resign. The Philippines has given notice it will not deploy a new contingent when its current peacekeeping force ends its already-extended stint in October. The latest crisis began after Syrian rebels overran the Quneitra crossing -- located on the de facto border between Syrian- and Israeli-controlled parts of the Golan Heights -- on Wednesday. A day later, Death Eaters from the al-Qaeda-affiliated Nusra Front seized the Fijian peacekeepers and surrounded their Filipino colleagues, demanding they surrender. The Filipinos, occupying two UN camps, refused and fought the rebels on Saturday. A first group of 35 peacekeepers was then successfully escorted out of one camp by Irish and Filipino forces in armored vehicles. The remaining 40 peacekeepers were besieged at the second camp by more than 100 gunnies who rammed the camp's gates with their trucks and fired mortar rounds. The Filipinos returned fire in self-defense, Philippine military officials said. | |
| Posted by:trailing wife |
| #6 Filipino Force Defied UN Commander During Syrian Golan Crisis And lived. |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2014-09-02 14:24 |
| #5 ...A great many Filipino military men know from first hand accounts what happens when you surrender. These guys aren't going down without a fight. Mike |
| Posted by: Mike Kozlowski 2014-09-02 12:14 |
| #4 Since they're already past their original scheduled stay, they should leave as soon as they can arrange transport, and refuse to provide anymore sacrifices for the UN. |
| Posted by: Rob Crawford 2014-09-02 11:38 |
| #3 Chances are they'd have just become hostages alongside the Fijans too. |
| Posted by: Thing From Snowy Mountain 2014-09-02 10:35 |
| #2 Gen. Gregorio Pio Catapang said he advised the 40 Filipino peacekeepers not to lay down their arms, and they defied the UN peacekeeping commander's order. The Filipino parents must not not raised any stupid, imbecilic children. The same cannot be said of the UN Commander who was a surrender monkey. |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2014-09-02 10:09 |
| #1 Srebrenica Part Deux anyone? |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2014-09-02 09:42 |