The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said on Tuesday, Oct. 10, that Filipinos in Israel have yet to request repatriation amid the conflict with the militant group Hamas.

“Yung general feeling ng mga Pilipino sa Israel kasi feeling nila nagno-normalize yung situation. Syempre may giyera kaya hindi normal pero wala na yung mga launching ng attacks or mga pumapasok na mga Hamas na nandadakip [kaya] medyo wala na sila sa panganib,” DFA Usec. Eduardo de Vega said in a DZRH interview.

Despite Filipinos in Israel not seeking repatriation at the moment, there were fellow countrymen in the Gaza Strip who wanted repatriation.

“Ang main focus natin ngayon ay yung mga Pilipino na gustong umuwi. Wala pong PIlipino sa Israel na nagpapa-repatriate pero meron sa Gaza kung saan galing ang mga Hamas [...] Meron at least 38 of them, kasama yung mga anak nilang minors, na gustong magpa-repatriate kaya sila yung pinag-iisipan natin,” he said.

The issue, however, was the blockade in Gaza. De Vega said contacts from the United Nations were needed to get these Filipinos out.

“Ang issue lang kung di sila makakalusot ng Israel, [pero] siguro sa Egypt natin subukan makapasok para galing dun makauwi sa Pinas,” he added.

The Philippine Embassy in Israel earlier reported that seven out of the 29 Filipinos who were reported missing remain unaccounted for.

According to de Vega, they were yet to verify the number of Filipinos who remain unaccounted for since reported cases still keep rising.

“Ive-verify namin kasi parang dumadami yung number kasi nagkaroon pa ng mga report na may mga dinukot so hindi ko matitiyak ilan ang numero pa na unaccounted for. Anim o pito, maaring madagdagan yan [pero] sana hindi po. Hindi pa natin alam kung saan yung whereabouts nila,” the DFA Undersecretary said.

When asked for advice, de Vega said that at the moment, it was not repatriation.

“Ang advice natin, hindi po repatriation. Ang advice namin wag munang pumunta ng Israel. Bawal muna ang travel dahil hindi pa 100 percent stable,” he said.