DHAKA: The Syrian rebel group the Nusra Front has released all UN peacekeepers from Fiji, Al Jazeera has learned.

The 44 peacekeepers were expected to cross from Syria into the Israeli side of the Golan Heights.

On Wednesday the group posted a video on its Twitter and YouTube accounts in which the hostages, from the South Pacific nation of Fiji, said they expected to be freed soon.

The Fijian peacekeepers were captured at their post in August about 8km away from the Philippine troops, who were rescued following an attack on their post on the Syrian side of the disputed territory.

The Golan Heights is a strategic plateau captured by Israel in a 1967 Middle East war.

Syria and Israel technically remain at war. Syrian troops are not allowed in an area of separation: under a 1973 ceasefire formalised in 1974.

The UN force monitors the area of separation, a narrow strip of land running about 70km from Mount Hermon on the Lebanese border to the Yarmouk River frontier with Jordan.

It comprises 1,223 soldiers from Fiji, India, Ireland, Nepal, Netherlands and the Philippines.

Austria, Japan and Croatia have all pulled their troops out of the monitoring force due to the deteriorating security situation and spillover from the Syrian war.

BDST: 1450 HRS, SEP 11, 2014