In a statement, which SANA got a copy of, the Foreign Ministry source added that Syria, “which has always asserted its respect of the UN mission as part of its international obligations, noticed that the two abduction cases which the Filipino battalion faced for the first time a year ago, and recently the Fijian force, were carried out with the direct complicity and incitement of Qatar.”

The source stressed that Qatar has ties with Jabhat al-Nusra- an offshoot of al-Qaeda- in terms of funding and arming the terrorist organization, ties, the source said, “are no longer unknown to the UN and the international community.”

“While stressing that the kidnapping of UNDOF personnel is an unforgivable crime, Syria affirms that Jabhat al-Nusra criminals wouldn’t have been able to commit such acts had they not been directly emboldened by Qatar as it has showed willingness to spend millions of dollars under the pretext of it making efforts to release the abducted UN personnel,” the source added.