Al-Qaeda linked militants released on Thursday a group of 45 Fijian UN peacekeepers they kidnapped two weeks ago in the Golan Heights.

Al-Qaeda linked militants released on Thursday a group of 45 Fijian UN peacekeepers they kidnapped two weeks ago in the Golan Heights.

A UN spokesman said the peacekeepers who were snatched from Quneitra on the Syrian side of the strategic plateau on August 28 by insurgents, were released unharmed and in "good condition.”

They were part of the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force, which monitors a 1974 ceasefire agreement between Israel and Syria on the Golan Heights.

"Today at 2:30 pm local time, the 45 Fijian peacekeepers who had been detained were handed to UNDOF," the spokesperson said.

"All the 45 peacekeepers are in good condition," he added, saying they would undergo medical checkups.

Shortly afterwards, they crossed from Syrian territory into the Israeli-controlled sector, an Israeli army spokeswoman told AFP.

Fijian leader Voreqe Bainimarama welcomed the release of the 45 peacekeepers, hailing the men as heroes after their two-week ordeal.

Bainimarama said the Blue Helmets were "healthy and in high spirits" and determined to continue their mission in the Middle East.

"These 45 men are heroes," he told reporters. "They kept their cool and showed restraint under the most extreme circumstances imaginable.

"Because of their discipline, not one militant was killed and none of our soldiers were harmed."

An AFP correspondent at the scene said the released Fijians were taken in UN vehicles to a UN base in the Palestinian occupied territories.

But shortly afterwards, they returned to Syrian territory through a different crossing point, a military spokeswoman told AFP.

A UN spokesman said the peacekeepers crossed back into Syria "and are currently at Camp Faouar undergoing medical attention. We understand that they are in good condition."

The spokesman said the abductors had made no demands to secure the release of the 45, "and there were no concessions."