Govt hopes 2 Filipinos among those to be freed

THE Department of Foreign Affairs yesterday said it is hoping that the two Filipinos who remain missing and were possibly taken hostage by Hamas will soon be released.

Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Eduardo Jose de Vega made the statement following the announcement by the Israeli government and Hamas of a truce deal for the release of some of the 240 hostages taken to Gaza in the aftermath of the October 7 Hamas attack that triggered a full-blown offensive by the Jewish state.

“Israel knows that we are hoping Filipino citizens will be among those to be first released.

But their priority is the release of Israeli children and their mothers,” he said in mixed Filipino and English in a TV interview.

De Vega said the two Filipinos who are missing, and possibly among the Hamas captives, include a man who was seen by his wife in a video forcibly taken on October 7. The other is a woman who has dual citizenship.

Despite the uncertainty and reports that the hostages to be released will initially include only Israeli citizens, De Vega said, the DFA considers the deal between Israel and Hamas a “good sign” for the other captives.

Israel and Hamas agreed on Wednesday to a ceasefire in Gaza to let in aid and release at least 50 hostages in exchange for at least 150 Palestinians jailed in Israel.

A statement from the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said 50 women and children would be released over four days at a rate of at least 10 per day. The truce could be extended.

Hamas has released just four of the 240 hostages.

More than half of the estimated hostages have foreign passports from at least 25 countries, including the two Filipinos, the Israeli government said last month.