President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Wednesday said he is closely monitoring the ongoing conflict in Israel and Iran as the government looks to aid in evacuating affected overseas Filipinos.
In a chance interview, President Marcos confirmed that the government has already made contact with Filipino nationals in both countries and has begun facilitating voluntary evacuations.
“We have already contacted all our nationals and asked them if they want to be evacuated,” President Marcos said.
“Some have asked to be evacuated out of Israel. At first, those in Iran didn’t want to leave, but now they’re afraid and are asking for help to get out,” he added.
The President noted that evacuation efforts have been complicated by the closure of several airports due to ongoing hostilities. “We’re trying to find routes to get them out,” he added.
The Department of Migrant Workers has deployed Secretary Hans Cacdac to Jordan to oversee coordination for the repatriation efforts, particularly for evacuees coming from Israel and Iran.
He clarified that there has been no decision yet to raise the alert level to 3 or 4, which would trigger mandatory repatriation protocols.
“We generally leave it to each individual or to each family to decide for themselves whether or not they feel safe or whether or not they would like to be evacuated,” he said.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department of Migrant Workers are expected to issue updates as the situation evolves.
