DAVAO CITY — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Sunday instructed government authorities to closely coordinate with the Philippine Embassy in Tel Aviv and the Migrant Workers Office (MWO) in Israel to ensure the safety and welfare of Filipinos affected in the ongoing conflict.
Marcos Jr, also instructed the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) to locate and account for all overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and their families in Israel.
The DMW has opened a hotline and several Viber and WhatsApp hotline numbers that will accept calls and queries from our OFWs and the Filipino community who are in need of government assistance.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) is still verifying the reported abduction of Filipino workers allegedly by Hamas militants who have launched a massive attack on Israel.
Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Ma. Teresita Daza said the Philippine Embassy in Tel Aviv received “unconfirmed reports” that some Filipinos working near the Israeli border were captured on Saturday morning.
“The Philippine Embassy in Tel Aviv has received these unconfirmed reports. We are still verifying them,” she said.