23 more Pinoys in Israel seek repatriation — OWWA

At least 23 more Filipinos in Israel have signed up for repatriation amid the ongoing tension in the Middle East, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) said Wednesday.

“Sa bansang Israel, 340 ang natanggap tawag at request for repatriation. Ini-isa-isa natin yung 340 at doon natin nakuha yung 26 na unang batch, 50 na susunod, at itong 23 na susunod pa,” OWWA administrator Patricia Yvonne Caunan told “Balitanghali.”

(We receive 340 calls and requests for repatriation from Israel. From that, we identified the first batch of 26, the next 50, and the additional 23.)

According to OWWA, there are about 30,000 Filipinos in Israel.

On Tuesday evening, 31 Filipinos arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

They are the first batch of Pinoys who were repatriated since hostilities between Israel and Iran began on June 13.

Meanwhile, the flight of 50 Filipinos in Israel, which was supposed to arrive this week, was delayed due to the temporary suspension of Qatari air traffic after Iran attacked a US military base in Doha.

“Yung 50 dapat darating sila either June 26 or 27, pero nagkaroon ng pagsasara ng airspace kaya iadjust sa schedule so in the next coming days may update tayo kung kelan darating yung batch two,” Caunan said.

(The 50 Filipinos were supposed to arrive on June 26 or 27, but the airspace was temporarily closed. So, we will adjust the schedule and give an update on their arrival in the coming days.)

The Philippine government has raised the crisis alert to level 3 in Israel and Iran, urging Filipinos in the affected areas to take advantage of the voluntary repatriation as armed hostilities between Israel and Iran continue.

DFA Undersecretary Eduardo de Vega earlier said eight Filipinos from Iran are expected to return to the Philippines this week. —Mariel Celine Serquiña/RF, GMA Integrated News