Third batch of Gaza Strip evacuees back in Manila

MANILA, Philippines - The third batch of Filipino evacuees that fled war-stricken Gaza has arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Thursday evening, a radio report said. Radio dzBB's Lito Laparan said a total of five families or 20 individuals, including two Palestinian husbands married to Filipinas, arrived at the airport’s terminal 1 onboard Etihad flight EY-428. The 20 evacuees were escorted by the Philippine Embassy officials from Tel Aviv in Israel as they flee Gaza Strip, a narrow land about the size of Siquijor Island in western Philippines, that is bordered by Egypt to the south and Israel to the north. Embassy officials accompanied the three Filipino-Palestinian families to the Israel-Jordan border in Allenby Bridge and were herded to the Jordan International Airport where their flight to Manila awaited them. Last Wednesday, 34 evacuees from Gaza Strip arrived in Manila, adding to the 16 that returned to the country last January 8. - GMANews.TV