MANILA, Aug. 21 (PNA) — The third government-chartered plane left Manila for Tunis, Tunisia Wednesday to bring home over 400 Filipino nationals who were evacuated from Libya.
Philippine Airlines flight PR 8009 is expected to arrive in Manila Friday, August 21, at 10:50 p.m. at NAIA Terminal 2. The arrival of this batch will bring the total number of Filipinos repatriated from Libya to more than 3,300.
The Filipinos were brought out of Libya via land route to Tunisia by the Philippine Embassy in Tripoli and the Rapid Response Team (RRT) composed of personnel from the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), and Philippine National Police (PNP).
“We laud these Filipinos for their timely decision to come home,” Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert F. del Rosario stated.
“The window of opportunity to bring our kababayans to safety is closing fast. We appeal to our nationals who are still in Libya to get in touch with our Embassy and the RRT in order to begin the process of their repatriation,” the Secretary added.
DFA, DOLE, and OWWA representatives will meet the repatriates at the airport to brief and render assistance, including the provision of fares and/or transportation to the repatriates’ hometowns/provinces.
To register for repatriation, Filipinos can reach the Philippine Embassy in Tripoli through the telephone numbers (00218) 918-244-208 / 914-370-399 / 945-348-481 and the e-mail addresses tripoli.pe@gmail.com and tripoli.pe@dfa.gov.ph.
The Embassy’s address is KM 7 Gargaresh Road, Abu Nawas, P.O. Box 12508, Tripoli. Families can also call DFA’s 24-hour hotlines (02) 552-7105 / (02) 834-4685 to register their relatives in Libya for repatriation. They may also call these numbers for any questions and concerns, or send their queries by e-mail to oumwa@dfa.gov.ph. (PNA)