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MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine government has assisted at least 1,000 Filipinos stranded at airports in four countries after the US-Israel strikes on Iran shut down wide swaths of airspace across the Middle East over the weekend, officials said Monday, March 2.
Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) Administrator Patricia Yvonne Caunan said 768 workers — many from Mindanao and Visayas — were assisted at Ninoy Aquino International Aiport (NAIA) Terminals 1 and 3 after their flights were cancelled.
Close to 100 more were helped at Clark International Airport. Another 132 Filipinos bound for Dubai and Riyadh were assisted at Hong Kong International Airport, while 33 were assisted at Singapore's Changi Airport.
Caunan said a first group of 50 stranded Filipino workers in Hong Kong were flown home last night through their recruitment agencies. A second group of 31 followed on government-provided tickets.
Airspace closures stall exits
Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) Secretary Hans Cacdac said 80 to 100 overseas Filipino workers in Dubai have formally asked to be taken home. He said similar numbers have come in from Israel, Bahrain, and Qatar.
But with airports in Dubai, Qatar, and several other Gulf states shut down and airspace closed across much of the region, there is currently no way to fly them out.
The United States and Israel launched joint strikes on Iran on February 28, killing Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and sparking retaliatory missile attacks by Tehran on US military bases in the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Oman, and Israel.
The exchange of fire shut down airports and stranded travelers worldwide.
"Walang mass repatriation sa ngayon kasi 'yun po ay mandatory level, which is alert level 4," Cacdac said. "But may mga humihiling na rin. Halimbawa, sa Dubai, 80 ang humiling na."
(There is no mass repatriation at this point because that requires alert level 4, which is mandatory evacuation. But some have started requesting it. In Dubai, for example, 80 have asked.)
Cacdac said the government is instead focusing on in-country evacuation, moving workers to shelters, providing food and water, and arranging transport to safer areas within host countries.
He said designated exit points, meeting points, and shelters have been identified in every affected country, though he withheld specifics.
Deployment ban imposed
Cacdac announced an immediate deployment ban on newly hired workers to countries under alert level 2. These are the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Israel and Jordan.
Under alert level 3 or higher — currently in effect in Lebanon, and expected to be in place Iran — even returning workers are barred from deployment.
"As we speak, nakikinig naman 'yung mga personnel natin sa DMW and we will already take action to not process mga newly hired for these places na alert level 2," he said.
He said the DMW's Aksyon Fund alone holds P2 billion. Combined with operational budgets of Philippine posts abroad, the government has P5 to P6 billion available for repatriation and emergency assistance.
Cacdac said augmentation and "salubong" teams are already being positioned near the borders of affected countries, ready to enter once these countries allow entry.
The DMW is coordinating with Defense Secretary Gibo Teodoro on the possible use of military assets for repatriation, and has engaged private companies that can provide land, sea, and air transport options.
"Timing is everything at this stage," Cacdac said. "Hindi po tayo muna manghimasok sa protocols ng host countries." (We will not interfere with host country protocols for now.)
Casualty confirmed
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. earlier confirmed the death of Mary Anne Velasquez De Vera, a 32-year-old caregiver from Basista, Pangasinan, who was killed by shrapnel from an Iranian missile strike on Tel Aviv on February 28. She is the first Filipino casualty from the US-Iran conflict that reignited over the weekend.
Aside from De Vera, Cacdac reported one minor injury: an OFW working at a fast food outlet inside Kuwait's airport sustained minor neck and knee wounds from the attacks. She has been discharged from the hospital.
The DMW chief said Filipinos in Iran are safe. He placed the number of Filipino migrant workers there at around 80, with roughly 1,400 total Filipinos, most of them married to Iranian nationals. No Filipino casualties have been reported in Iran.
Caunan said the DMW-OWWA 24/7 operations center has handled 92 cases through their hotline since the conflict began, most of them from families in the Philippines asking about the repatriation of their loved ones.
She urged OFWs in the Middle East to reach them through their WhatsApp numbers, which she said is the most widely used platform in the region.
2.4 million Filipinos across the Middle East
The Department of Foreign Affairs estimates 2.4 million Filipinos live and work across the Middle East, with the largest concentrations in the UAE (973,000), Saudi Arabia (813,000), Qatar (250,000), and Kuwait (211,000). About 31,000 are in Israel and 800 in Iran.
Cacdac acknowledged that the government is preparing for the possibility of a large-scale repatriation but said it is "hard to get too far ahead of ourselves" while the conflict is still unfolding.
The DMW is also monitoring the situation in the Strait of Hormuz and is working to assist Filipino seafarers in leaving the area.
"We're working closely with their license agencies and the ship owners to assure their safety," Cacdac said. "Rest assured, we're helping them out also and looking to get them out of there."
