Marcos: Locate all Filipinos in Israel

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has ordered the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) to locate and account for all Filipinos in Israel, where attacks by the Palestinian group Hamas on Saturday triggered Israeli airstrikes over the Gaza Strip.

Hamas launched a massive surprise attack at daybreak Saturday, firing thousands of rockets into Israel while its fighters entered Israeli communities near the Gaza Strip, killing residents and taking hostages. The attacks prompted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to declare war on Hamas, ordering airstrikes that killed hundreds in the Gaza Strip, a Palestinian enclave.

“The government is closely coordinating with the Philippine Embassy in Tel Aviv and the Migrant Workers Office (MWO) in Israel to ensure the safety and welfare of Filipinos affected in the ongoing conflict,” Presidential Communications Secretary Cheloy Velicaria-Garafil said.

“The DMW has opened a hotline and several Viber and WhatsApp hotline numbers that will accept calls and queries from our OFWs and the Filipino community who are in need of government assistance,” Garafil added.

The Palace also said that the order from President Marcos also covers workers’ families affected by the war.

Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac said his agency is checking on Filipino workers in Israel, especially in areas near the Gaza Strip, a Palestinian area governed by Hamas and blockaded by Israel and Egypt.

The DMW and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) have formed a task force to assist Filipinos there, Cacdac said.

In a press conference over Zoom earlier Sunday, Israeli Ambassador Ilan Fluss Fluss said the Israeli and Filipino embassies were still verifying reports that Filipinos were among those kidnapped by Hamas militants.

“We are still in an emergency situation. Things have not yet stabilized. We don’t have enough information yet on identities and names of the people that were killed, injured, and kidnapped,” the Israeli ambassador said in a media briefing.

“We know there are Thai nationals involved but we are not aware of any Philippine nationals,” Fluss added.

“The Philippines conveys its deepest sympathies and condolences to those who