Iran rallies Arab nations vs Israel — Phl raises Alert 3 in Gaza
US President Joe Biden has cautioned that Israel must, despite ‘all the anger and frustration, operate by the rules of war’
Foreign Ministers attend an Arab League extraordinary meeting in Cairo on October 11, 2023. The league's foreign ministers will discuss "Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip" following a surprise assault by Hamas on Israel, the regional bloc announced on October 9. (Photo by Khaled DESOUKI / AFP)
As Iran rallied the Islamic world to come to Palestine's aid and NATO called on Israel for "proportionality" in its attacks against Hamas, the Philippine government on Thursday mobilized its assets for the possible repatriation of its citizens from war-torn Israel and Gaza.
Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has called on Islamic and Arab countries to confront Israel as the latter continued to wage a deadly war triggered by a surprise attack by the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
Hamas' weekend onslaught saw hundreds of fighters cross into Israel in vehicles, by air and by sea, killing 1,200 people and seizing 150 hostages under the cover of a deluge of rockets.
About another 1,200 people have been killed in thousands of retaliatory Israeli strikes on Gaza, while a "complete siege" has been imposed on the impoverished Palestinian enclave of over 2.4 million people.
No info on 3rd Filipino
With two Filipinos confirmed to have been killed, the Philippine government yesterday raised Alert Level 3 in Gaza to allow for the voluntary repatriation of its citizens from the bombed-out Gaza Strip.
At press time, there was no information on the fate of a third Filipino feared to have been killed by Hamas.
At least 22 overseas Filipino workers — 19 caregivers and three hotel workers — have asked to be repatriated, Department of Migrant Worker Officer-in-Charge Hans Leo Cacdac said.
The Department of Foreign Affairs, on the other hand, said that of the 137 Filipinos in Gaza, at least 70 had requested to be repatriated.
"We have been monitoring if they are on safe grounds," Cacdac said, adding that those Filipinos who were still in danger had been referred to the Israel Defense Force, or IDF.
He said that as of 12 October, the DMW had received 120 requests for assistance of various natures from OFWs.
In Manila, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. assured all of the about 30,000 Filipinos in Israel and the dozens in Gaza, mostly Filipinas married to Palestinians, that the government is ready to repatriate them once the Israelis open a "humanitarian corridor" for safe passage.