Al Qaeda behind UN abductions?

The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Thursday that al Qaeda linked Nusra Front was one of the groups responsible for abducting the peacekeepers in Syria's Golan Heights on Thursday, adding that the fate of the 43 workers was "still unknown."

"Such action does not fall in the interest of the Syrian people, who started an uprising in March 2011 in the face of a tyrant regime in order to reach democracy, freedom, justice and equality. We call for their immediate and unconditional release," the Observatory said in a statement.

The Syrian government has also denounced the "kidnapping" of the UN peacekeepers, saying in a statement that it held "the terrorist groups and those who support them fully responsible for the safety of the UN peacekeepers, and calls for their immediate release."

The UN said it was "making every effort" to secure the release of its blue helmets from the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF), who were "detained" in the Quneitra area of the Golan Heights.

A further 81 peacekeepers who were located in the same area are reported to be "trapped."

According to the UN, the 43 peacekeepers were detained "during a period of increased fighting beginning yesterday between armed elements and Syrian Arab Armed Forces," but were unable to confirm which armed group had detained the peacekeepers.

The UNDOF, comprising troops from Fiji, India, Ireland, Nepal, Netherlands and the Philippines, has been monitoring a 1974 disengagement accord between Syria and Israel following their 1973 war.

ksb/glb (dpa, AFP, AP, Reuters)