MASS REPATRIATION OF FILIPINOS IN ISRAEL PREMATURE — DMW CHIEF

IT is not yet time to conduct a mass repatriation of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who are stuck in the Israel-Gaza conflift, according to Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) officer-in-charge Hans Leo Cacdac.

Cacdac said the current situation in Israel is still volatile and not yet safe to carry out a mass repatriation of the Filipinos who are there. Cacdac pointed out that  government agencies are currently monitoring the situation in Israel and they are waiting for a safe window to evacuate Filipinos. Funds and personnel are on hand, however, a repatriation is a mass effort where Filipinos must be transported to the airports, Cacdac explained. He said the Israeli government  advises residents and foreigners there to stay inside their homes since they will be safer there. “At the right time, in coordination with Israeli authorities, we will evacuate and repatriate those who want to go home,” Cacdac said.

He noted that majority of Filipinos in the Gaza Strip are not overseas workers but wives of Palestinians, saying that they too, including their families, wanted to be repatriated if necessary.

seeOverseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) administrator Arnell Ignacio said they have initially received 10 requests for repatriation and vowed they will immediately begin evacuating Filipinos as soon as they get “full clearance” from the Israeli government and the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA). 

Meanwhile, the  Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) has imposed a total ban on the deployment of Filipino workers to conflict-hit areas in Israel, citing dangers from the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.

“No deployment as of now,” said  Cacdac, adding the government is  focusing on the security of Filipinos in Israel, Gaza Strip and Tel Aviv.

“Those who were rescued by the Philippine Embassy are being taken care of by welfare officers and labor attaché. They are in undisclosed rescue areas and being provided with needed assistance,” Cacdac said.

All seven missing OFWs have been identified, including the one who was reportedly taken hostage by Hamas militants and their families have already been informed about the situation in Israel.