US Embassy says social media updates limited due to federal gov’t shutdown

The US Embassy in Manila on Monday announced limited social media updates, citing "lapse in appropriations," but said visa processing and emergency services for American citizens in the Philippines will continue.

"Due to the lapse in appropriations, the US Embassy's Facebook, X, and Instagram accounts will not be updated regularly until full operations resume, with the exception of urgent safety and security information," the embassy said in a statement.

This means normal advisories, statements and other social media posts will be suspended until operations normalize.

Scheduled visa interviews and American Citizens Services appointments at the U.S. Embassy in the Philippines, however, "will proceed as scheduled during the lapse in appropriations," it said.

The offsite Visa Application Center in Parqal in Parañaque City will also remain open for visa applicants who are scheduled for photo and fingerprint collection.

Visa applicants are to contact the Consular Section through ACSInfoManila@state.gov (for US citizens) or ph.usembassy.gov/contact-us-visas/ for concerns. For updates, US citizen services will be at ph.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen-services/ and for visas at ph.usembassy.gov/visas.

Republicans and Democrats in Congress are having a hard time finding a bipartisan agreement on a government funding bill amid US President Donald Trump's violent immigration crackdown, resulting in a partial crackdown.

The shooting last month of two US citizens, Alex Pretti and Renée Nicole Good, by federal agents in Minneapolis angered Democrats as one of the six remaining budget bills proposes bigger funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), whose agents have been accused of using aggressive and deadly force against undocumented migrants and those protesting their actions. — BM, GMA Integrated News