MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) confirmed the recommendation of lowering the alert level in Israel, amidst the conflict between Israel and Iran.
In an interview with the media on Thursday, DFA Assistant Secretary for Middle East and African Affairs Germinia V. Aguilar-Usudan said there is already a recommendation to lower the alert level from alert level 1 to alert level 2.
“For Israel, there is already a recommendation to lower it to Alert Level 2, but we still have to get the approval of the Secretary,” Aguilar-Usudan said.
She added that the recommendation came from the Philippine Embassy in Israel.
In the same media interview, DFA Undersecretary for Migration Affairs Eduardo de Vega emphasized that even if the recommendation to lower the alert level wiil be approved to Alert Level 2, the deployment ban to Israel still stands.
“But if the Ambassador says we go back down to Alert Level 2, that is still no new deployment. The situation is, even if there's a solution like we see with Iran, there's still a conflict with Hamas, with Gaza. That's why we're calling for long-standing peace,” Usec. De Vega explained.
Usudan reiterated that once the situation in Israel normalizes, the negotiation on the labor agreement will pursue.
“Maybe after that, with DMW (Department of Migrant Workers) coming up with an agreement with Israel, we will resume deployment of workers in Israel,” Usudan stated.
The Philippine Embassy in Tel Aviv earlier announced the return of “Full Activity Status” in Israel.
In its Facebook post on June 24, 2025, the Embassy mentioned the announcement following the declaration of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Front Command, making it now possible for the reopening of schools, workplaces at lifting of limitations on group and worship activities.
