Syrian Rebels Release 4 UN Peacekeepers

In this image taken from video obtained from the Ugarit News, which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, four abducted Filipino UN peacekeepers are seen in Daraa, Syria, May 9, 2013.

Syrian rebels have released four U.N. peacekeepers from the Philippines after abducting them last Tuesday in the Golan Heights.

The Filipinos are said to be unharmed, and have been transported to Israel since their release Sunday.

The four are part of a U.N. peacekeeping contingent that patrols the buffer zone in the disputed Golan Heights, which Israel took from Syria in 1967.

Rebels with the Yarmouk Martyrs Brigade said the peacekeepers were being held for their own safety after clashes between Syrian government and rebel forces in the area.

The abduction of Filipino peacekeepers in the area is the second since March when 21 were held for several days by rebels fighting Syrian forces.