Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, October 7) — No Filipino has been reported dead or hurt so far in Israel following a surprise attack from Palestinian militants on Saturday, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said.
However, the Philippine Embassy in Tel-Aviv and the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) said they received unconfirmed reports of Filipinos killed in the unrest and kidnapped by militant forces of the Hamas Islamist movement as claimed by some news aggregators, which the agencies are attempting to verify.
DFA Undersecretary Eduardo De Vega said majority of Filipinos in Israel are far from Gaza, where around 2,200 missiles from the Islamist movement Hamas were fired.
“Yung majority diyan, malayo from Gaza (Majority of them are far from Gaza),” he told CNN Philippines’ Newsroom Weekend. “They are usually in Tel Aviv or in other cities like Haifa, some in Jerusalem…Doon mismo sa area (In that area), I believe there’s only a handful.”
De Vega said the Philippine Embassy is waiting for the Israeli government’s call for evacuation.
The strike by the militant group has left at least 70 people dead and nearly 800 injured, according to a report by CNN citing Israel’s rescue service Magen David Adom. Reports also said that militants have entered the Israeli territory.
This has triggered Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to declare war and retaliate with massive strikes against a number of Hamas targets in Gaza.
But Israel Ambassador to the Philippines Ilan Fluss said that everyone should still be on guard as the Israeli government has yet to take full control of the streets.
“So basically, people have to stay indoors, lock the doors, and wait for further instructions, and certainly not go out,” he told CNN Philippines.
Meanwhile, the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) issued an advisory urging Filipinos in the country to take precautionary safety measures and to follow the instructions provided by the Israeli Homefront Command.
The DMW, the Philippine Embassy, and the Migrant Workers Office (MWO) in Israel are closely monitoring the situation of Filipino residents amid unrest in the country.
It shared that the Filipino community leaders are in contact with the Philippine Embassy and the MWO, and that the Pinoys there “remain calm and are accounted for.”
The DMW also said that the family of an overseas Filipino worker (OFW) in Israel has sought assistance from the agency. It said that it contacted the OFW and found her safe.
The DMW and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration set up a 24/7 Task Force for OFWs in Israel and their families, which can be reached through these numbers:
Hotline: +63 2 1348
WhatsApp and Viber: +63 9083268344 | +63 9271478186 | +63 9205171059.
One of the news aggregators, Visegrad 24, tweeted that some Thai and Filipino workers had been kidnapped by Hamas Saturday morning and posted a photo of several men held at gunpoint. This has not yet been verified.
CNN International, in its live coverage of the attack, said that militant forces had taken hostages and prisoners of war.
LIVE UPDATES: Israel says it is ‘at war’ after Hamas surprise attack
Meanwhile, live reports from CNN said that nearly 200 were killed and over 1,600 were injured in Gaza, a Palestinian territory bordering the eastern and northern parts of Israel
Senator Joel Villanueva shared to reporters on Saturday images of text conversations between Filipino pastors based in Israel.
In one of the conversations, a Filipino woman in Jerusalem said she was seeking protection in a bomb shelter amid heavy rocket fire in her area.
In another, a Filipino man in Bat Yam said the bombing began at around 6:20 a.m. in Israel, adding that soldiers and civilians had been killed, while some Israeli forces were captured by Hamas.
