Fiji may have jumped gun on fate of its UN troops

FILE - In this Sept. 2, 2014 file photo, provided by Fiji's Ministry of Information, Fiji’s military commander Brig. Gen. Mosese Tikoitoga speaks about the capture of 45 Fiji troops in Syria during a press conference at the military headquarters in Suva. Fiji on Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2014, may have jumped the gun by announcing that its 45 United Nations peacekeepers who are being held captive by Syrian insurgents would be freed soon. Tikoitoga said Fiji had been told by U.N. headquarters in New York that the Nusra Front had agreed to release the men later this week without any conditions or demands. (AP Photo/Fiji's Ministry of Information, File) EDITORIAL USE ONLY FILE - In this Sept. 2, 2014 file photo, provided by Fiji's Ministry of Information, Fiji’s military commander Brig. Gen. Mosese Tikoitoga speaks about the capture of 45 Fiji troops in Syria during a press conference at the military headquarters in Suva. Fiji on Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2014, may have jumped the gun by announcing that its 45 United Nations peacekeepers who are being held captive by Syrian insurgents would be freed soon. Tikoitoga said Fiji had been told by U.N. headquarters in New York that the Nusra Front had agreed to release the men later this week without any conditions or demands. (AP Photo/Fiji's Ministry of Information, File) EDITORIAL USE ONLY

By Associated Press September 10, 2014 4 min read

SUVA, Fiji (AP) – Fiji on Wednesday may have jumped the gun by announcing that its 45 United Nations peacekeepers who are being held captive by Syrian insurgents would be freed soon.

The South Pacific nation later tried to retract the comments, but by then they had been reported around the world.

At a Wednesday morning news conference in Suva, Fiji’s military chief said Fiji had been told by U.N. headquarters in New York that the Nusra Front had agreed to release the men later this week without any conditions or demands.

Brig. Gen. Mosese Tikoitoga said three senior Fijian military officers would arrive soon in the Golan Heights to receive the men. Fiji’s government also announced the news on social media.

But within hours, the messages had been deleted and the government had replaced them with a bland statement: “All efforts to release the Fijian peacekeepers are continuing.”