A Middle East Airlines commercial aircraft taking off from Beirut's international airport, amid smoke billowing above the Lebanese capital's southern suburbs, after Israeli strikes, on 28 September, 2024. Photo: AFP
Fijian peacekeepers in the Middle East are "well, safe and in high morale" amid escalated tensions in the region, the country's acting home affairs minister says.
In a statement on Thursday evening, Filimoni Vosarogo said the safety of Fijian peacekeepers was "of utmost important" and reiterated the call by the United Nations secretary general for an absolute ceasefire in the region.
Vosarogo said the amidst the hostility in the region following Iran's airstrikes in Israel airspaces, security protocols for Fijian peacekeepers remains paramount.
Fijian peacekeepers. Photo: Fiji govt
Fiji has been providing troops for UN peacekeeping for more than four decades, contributing more soldiers to than any other nation, on a per capita basis.
The minister said he has been briefed by the Fiji military commander on the situation.
"Our men and women in Lebanon, Syria- Golan Heights, Jerusalem and Sinai continue to monitor the situation with heightened awareness.
"With the region's stability at stake, threats continuing and subsisting with variables that are uncertain presently, I am urging all our citizens to continue to lift our men and women of the RFMF in our prayers for their safety in these challenging times," he said.