Fijians flocked to vote Wednesday in the South Pacific nation's first election since a 2006 coup, with officials declaring the poll trouble-free and military strongman Voreqe Bainimarama appearing set for victory.

Long queues formed at polling centers before doors opened at 7:30 am (1930 GMT Tuesday) and a festive atmosphere prevailed, with many people turning out in their Sunday best to take part in the return to democracy after almost eight years of military rule.

Almost eight years after seizing power in a bloodless coup, Fiji's military strongman Voreqe Bainimarama has declared himself a convert to democracy and appears headed for an election victory and the legitimacy he has long craved.

The 60-year-old has enthusiastically taken to the hustings in the lead up to the September 17 vote, touring the South Pacific nation in a blue bus emblazoned with the name of his FijiFirst party.

The Pacific nation of Fiji will Wednesday hold its first elections in almost eight years, with voters urged to embrace democracy after decades of ethnic tensions and military meddling in civil affairs.

The September 17 vote is considered pivotal to ending the archipelago's "coup culture", which saw four governments toppled between 1987 and 2006 amid instability stemming from tensions between indigenous Fijians and ethnic Indians.

Jubilant Fijians celebrated Friday the release of 45 U.N. peacekeepers from the South Pacific nation who were kidnapped by al-Qaida linked rebels on the Golan Heights, hailing them as heroes after their two-week ordeal.

Fijian leader Voreqe Bainimarama said the prayers of the deeply religious South Pacific nation had been answered with confirmation that fighters from the al-Nusra Front had released the Blue Helmets unharmed.

Al-Qaida linked rebels in Syria on Thursday released a group of 45 Fijian U.N. peacekeepers they kidnapped two weeks ago in the Golan Heights, a U.N. spokesman said.

The peacekeepers, snatched from Quneitra on the Syrian side of the strategic plateau on August 28 by fighters from the al-Nusra Front, were released unharmed and in "good condition," the spokesman said.

Fiji on Wednesday retracted a claim that 45 U.N. peacekeepers being held hostage in the Golan Heights by Syrian al-Nusra Front rebels were about to be released, blaming a communications mix-up.

"I don't think so... someone has misinterpreted," government spokesman Dan Gavidi told Agence France Presse when asked if posts on official social media feeds on Wednesday morning trumpeting the impending release were correct.

Fiji's army chief on Thursday dismissed as "sick" a suggestion the Pacific nation's Muslim minority will face a backlash if 45 U.N. peacekeepers taken hostage by Islamic rebels in the Golan Heights are harmed.

Brigadier General Mosese Tikoitoga also defended the action of his troops in surrendering to al-Qaida-linked Al-Nusra Front rebels, even though a contingent of 75 Filipino peacekeepers who defied an order to lay down their weapons all escaped unscathed.

Fiji revealed for the first time Tuesday the demands being made by al-Qaida-linked Syria rebels who took more than 40 U.N. peacekeepers hostage in the Golan Heights last week.

Fiji army chief Mosese Tikoitoga said the rebels wanted their organisation, the al-Qaida affiliate al-Nusra Front, to be removed from the U.N.'s list of terrorist organisations.

Talks were underway Friday to release 43 Fijian peacekeepers taken hostage by Syrian rebels in the Golan Heights, the Pacific nation's Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama said.

Bainimarama said the peacekeepers were believed to be safe and his government was working closely with the United Nations to secure their release.

Fiji's new army commander said Thursday that he wanted to end the Pacific nation's coup culture, but defended the military's role in ousting the last democratically-elected government in 2006.

Brigadier-General Mosese Tikoitoga became Fiji's military chief on Wednesday after his predecessor Voreqe Bainimarama, who seized power in a bloodless coup eight years ago, relinquished command to pursue a career in politics.