5 Pinoys unaccounted for amid Israel war with Hamas —envoy -- By ANNA FELICIA BAJO and JOVILAND RITA, GMA Integrated News

At least five Filipinos are unaccounted for amid the massive attack of Palestinian militant group Hamas on Israel over the weekend, a Philippine official said Monday. Interviewed on Super Radyo dzBB, Philippine Ambassador to Israel Pedro Laylo Jr. said Israeli authorities were able to locate two from the seven Filipinos who were earlier reported to be unaccounted. "Actually lima na lang (ang unaccounted), 'yung dalawa bale noong nag-clearing operations 'yung IDF [Israel Defense Forces] may dalawa na nakita sila," he said. (There are now only five. Two were found during the clearing operations of the IDF.) Laylo added that the two were found hiding in a "safe room." "May mga safe rooms kasi diyan, dito sa mga bahay sa Israel. Doon sila nagtago. Noong kinatok ng IDF noong nag-clearing sila, natagpuan nila itong dalawang Pilipino na nagtatago," he said. (Houses here in Israel have safe rooms. That's where they were found hiding by the IDF.) Laylo said Philippine authorities continue to coordinate with their counterparts in Israel to ensure the safety of Filipinos and locate those who have remained unaccounted for. Meanwhile, Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs Eduardo de Vega told GMA News Online that the Philippine Embassy in Israel is checking on the information shared by an Israel-based overseas Filipino worker (OFW) that eight Filipinos were missing. "[I]f the Pinoy is saying 8, Embassy is checking," De Vega said. Interviewed on Unang Balita on Monday, Benjamin Nepomuceno said the information regarding the eight missing Filipinos were posted in a Facebook community page.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

POPCOM, gagamit ng ‘digital platforms’ para pagtibayin ang mga ugnayang pampamilya

Mas pinalalawig ng Komisyon sa Populasyon at Pagpapaunlad (POPCOM) ang adhikain nitong pagpapalaganap at pagpapabuti ng pakikipag-ugnayan ng mga nakakatandang Pilipino sa kanilang mga anak na nagdadalaga at nagbibinata. Nitong Setyembre 21, ang POPCOM ay nagsagawa ng isang “parent-teen talk webinar” gamit ang Zoom, kung saan ang isang “interactive program” ang nagbigay ng naaayon na kaalaman at kasanayan sa mga magulang, habang tumulong ito sa mga anak na teenager na maabot ang kanilang buong potensyal. Hinikayat din nito ang mga nanay at tatay na sumali sa malayang usapan, lalo na sa mga usapin ukol sa sex at sekswalidad, na nakikitang makakatulong upang bumaba ang mga bilang ng mga pagbubuntis sa hanay ng mga kabataan. Maaaring mapanood ang webinar sa https://youtu.be/lZ9jrJCjYas. Ayon kay Ikalawang Kalihim (Undersecretary) Juan Antonio A. Perez III, MD, MPH, “ang webinar ay naging isang tagapag-simula at ‘padaluyan’ ng pag-uu
Read more

UP Diliman Professors Share Scientists’ Procurement Struggles at Senate Hearing

By Harvey Sapigao Senate hearing of the revised procurement law (Photo credit: Senate of the Philippines) College of Science (CS) Dean Giovanni Tapang held up a little white device as he finished his presentation. “This is a ₱150,000 component,” he described. “Isa lang gumagawa nito sa buong mundo, pero ang hirap pilitin sila na magregister sa PhilGEPS,” he continued, referring to the requirement that foreign companies must first register to the Philippine Government Electronic Procurement System (PhilGEPS) before they can sell products to local scientists. Marine Science Institute (MSI) Deputy Director Dr. Irene Rodriguez explained that the small device is a resin that filters metals in water. “May budget tayo,” she said, “pero ang problema ko ay ‘yung resin na ito.” This and other bottlenecks brought about by the procurement law, or the Government Procurement Reform Act (RA 9184), slow down research and development in the country. UPD leaders were invited to the Senate he
Read more

Gaza war rages into fourth month as Blinken tours Middle East Adel Zaanoun with Ilan Ben Zion in Jerusalem, --- Agence France-Presse

The Israel-Hamas war raging in Gaza entered its fourth month on Sunday as the army again pounded the besieged Palestinian territory and US top diplomat Antony Blinken was back in the region seeking to avoid a wider escalation. Israeli airstrikes overnight and early Sunday killed at least 64 people in the Hamas-run Palestinian territory, said its health ministry. It said two journalists were killed when their car was struck. The ministry, medics, and witnesses identified them as Mustafa Thuria, a video stringer for Agence France-Presse, and Hamza Wael Dahdouh, the son of Al Jazeera's bureau chief in Gaza who earlier lost his wife and two other children in an Israeli strike. Israeli bombardment also claimed other civilian lives in the southern city of Khan Yunis and in the Rafah area near the Egyptian border, where many of the territory's displaced people have sought refuge, AFP correspondents reported. Relatives were mourning the dead at Khan Yunis' European Hospital, am
Read more