PHILIPPINE Ambassador to Israel Pedro Laylo Jr., said on Monday that at least five Filipinos remain unaccounted for after the massive attack of Palestinian militant group Hamas on Israel.
Laylo said in an interview aired over radio station dzBB that based on the report given to them, Israeli authorities were able to locate two from the seven Filipinos who were earlier reported to be missing.
“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.
He said 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.
For now authorities are coordinating with their counterparts in Israel for the safety of the Filipinos.
Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) Deputy Administrator Arnell Ignacio for his part said that they are checking the report that a Filipino is hospitalized after getting hurt.
Meanwhile, Globe has announced it is offering free connectivity, including roaming call, text and data to Filipinos in Israel to help them keep in touch with loved ones amid reports of the worst militant attacks in the area.
Globe postpaid and prepaid customers currently using roaming services in Israel may connect with their loved ones with free 15 minutes of incoming and outgoing calls, 15 texts to all networks, and 1GB data (whichever service is currently available) good for 7 days at no extra cost.
To avail of the free roaming service, Globe customers only need to connect to Globe’s roaming partners Cellcom, Partner Communications and Pelephone. No registration is required for the goodwill offer, and this free roaming service will be automatically provided to Globe customers currently in Israel.
On Saturday, Hamas launched a huge attack against Israel, firing rockets and deploying gunmen to several Israeli towns. At least 22 people in Israel were killed.
A “state of war alert” was issued by Israel’s Home Front Command following the attack.
