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US-Israel-Iran conflict: Filipinos ask President Marcos for repatriation plans
Safe shelters, accessible communication channels, swift documentation processing, and unconditional repatriation must be guaranteed, said Migrante-Middle East
- PUBLISHED: Sun 1 Mar 2026, 7:20 PM UPDATED: Sun 1 Mar 2026, 9:40 PM
[Editor's Note: Follow Khaleej Times live blog amid Israeli, US strikes on Iran for the latest regional developments.]
Worried Filipinos urged the Philippine government on Sunday to make top priority the protection of lives and welfare of compatriots in countries affected by the US/Israel-Iran war.
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As Iran launched repeated retaliatory salvoes after suffering airstrikes from US and Israel on Saturday, migrant workers group Migrante-Middle East asked Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to implement “immediate, decisive, and fully funded evacuation and protection measures for all Filipinos in affected areas.”
“Safe shelters, accessible communication channels, swift documentation processing, and unconditional repatriation must be guaranteed,” the Filipino group underscored.
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With more than two million Filipinos in the region, Migrante-Middle East said Marcos “must go beyond advising compatriots to limit their movements.” Instead, Migrante-Middle East asserted, “Philippine authorities must put in place repatriation plans throughout the region as the war shows no signs of de-escalation.”
Their call comes following confirmation on Sunday that a Filipina caregiver was killed in Israel, as a result of Iranian retaliatory airstrike.
“We are deeply concerned about the rapidly escalating conflict between Israel-USA on one hand, and Iran on the other, which endangers the lives and limbs of more than two million overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in the Middle East,” the group said.
Migrante added repatriated workers must be provided with substantial financial aid, livelihood assistance, and long-term reintegration support. “These OFWs left the Philippines because of landlessness, unemployment, lack of job opportunities, and poverty at home, but now find themselves trapped in a wars they did not choose.”
“We are reminded now that it is ordinary people, not the war-makers, who greatly suffer in times of conflict,” said the group. They also called on the Philippine government to scrap its labor export policy and instead focus on creating decent jobs and opportunities within the country.
Migrante said: “It is high time for the [Philippine] government to prioritise the welfare of its citizens by ending the reliance on overseas employment and investing in local industries that can provide sustainable livelihood for all Filipinos."
