Amid war, Israel needs more OFWs – envoy

BACOLOD CITY, Philippines — Israel is looking for more overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) amid hundreds of repatriations and the war in Gaza. 

At a press briefing here last Monday, Israeli Ambassador Ilan Fluss said 800 of 28,000 OFWs in Israel had been repatriated after most of them fulfilled their contracts.  

“We need tens of thousands of workers in Israel. We brought in workers from India, Sri Lanka and Thailand, but we don’t have OFWs coming into Israel as of this time,” he said. 

The Philippine government restricted the deployment of OFWs into Israel due to the war that started on Oct. 7, 2023. 

“We hope that the Philippine government realizes it is now safe, except at the border in Gaza,” Fluss said. 

He maintained that “everything is fine” in Israel and restaurants, schools, hotels and cinemas are open for business. 

Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa and other tourist destinations are open to visitors, he added. 

An Israeli airstrike on May 26 reportedly killed at least 35 people and injured dozens at a tent camp in Rafah, where Israel’s military had designated a humanitarian safe zone for displaced Palestinians.  

Two days before the airstrike, the International Court of Justice ordered Israel to end its military operations in Rafah in southern Gaza. 

Islamist group Hamas had launched an attack against Israel after years of conflict, settler violence and the displacement of Palestinians. 

The Oct. 7 attack resulted in around 1,200 casualties and 250 hostages, according to Israeli figures. 

Among the casualties was Loreta Alacre, an OFW from Negros Occidental. 

Fluss met with Alacre’s family on May 31 in Barangay Cadiz Viejo, Cadiz City. 

“I want to make sure that they got all the assistance from the Israeli government,” he said. 

Jimmy Pacheco, one of two Filipinos freed by Hamas, is now back in Israel, Fluss noted. 

Israel is a good employer that treats OFWs like citizens, eligible for pension and medical insurance, he added.