MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines continues to negotiate an exit path for some 92 Filipinos who want to exit Gaza, ahead of an expected ground invasion of Israeli forces, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said on Friday, October 13.

“We are working on it. We are working with our partners, with our diplomatic partners to see if a diplomatic corridor can be opened…if not through the border with Israel, through the Rafah Border in Egypt,” Foreign Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Eduardo de Vega in a press briefing on Friday. 

Of some 131 Filipinos living in the Gaza Strip, at least 92 have said they want to return to the Philippines, said De Vega. 

Israel has warned civilians living in the Palestinian territory to flee to the south as Israeli forces continued strikes on Gaza in retaliation for the surprise attack of Palestinian Islamist group Hamas on Israel on October 7. 

Hamas, an Islamist fundamentalist group, controls Gaza, which is under land, sea, and air blockade. Israel has said it would operate “significantly” in Gaza City. 

Israeli military forces have included civilian buildings in their attacks on Hamas, arguing that these buildings were being used by the militant group. This has had devastating consequences on the Palestinian population in Gaza. 

The United Nations has said that it would impossible for such a huge movement in Gaza to take place “without devastating humanitarian consequences.”

Thus far, Philippine officials are looking at two options for Filipinos to leave Gaza: the border with Israel, or the Rafah Border Crossing shared with Egypt. 

Other nations, as well as the United Nations, have been trying to negotiate with both Egypt and Israel to establish a “humanitarian corridor” or an exit plan for refugees to flee Gaza. 

The corridor isn’t just a physical space – it includes commitments from both sides to demilitarize an area for a set amount of time. 

“They can allow civilians to leave, humanitarian assistance to come in or allow for the evacuation of the wounded, sick or dead,” according to the International Committee on the Red Cross. 

The Philippines has placed Gaza under Alert Level 3, meaning repatriation is still optional.

What about their husbands? 

There are around 200 Filipinos in Palestine – 70 in the West Bank and over 131 in Gaza. According to De Vega, Filipinos in the West Bank are multi-generational: there are Filipinas married to Palestinians, as well as their children and even grandchildren. 

Ahead of the declaration of a humanitarian corridor, De Vega said plans are already in place. The Philippine embassy in Cairo will send a team to the border in anticipation of a humanitarian corridor. 

De Vega expressed confidence that the evacuation would happen swiftly, once they get the go signal from the embassy. 

The Philippines is also helping and seeking the help of countries in securing its nationals. In the West Bank, for instance, Indonesia has been offering help for possible repatriation. Jakarta has also asked Manila for help in assisting its nationals in Gaza. 

Discussions are typically through the Philippine embassies in Tel Aviv, Amman, and Cairo, although in the case of Thailand, discussions have been made through their envoys in Manila and the DFA. 

The embassies have also been using diplomatic networks across the region to help locate the three missing Filipinos, just in case they managed to end up outside of Israel or Gaza, amid the chaos following Hamas’ attack. 

Embassies in Cairo and Amman have also been fixing the documents and papers of Filipinos in Gaza, in anticipation of their repatriation. But Philippine officials have a big problem: What about their Palestinian husbands? 

While the Philippines will welcome the Palestinian spouses of Filipino nationals, the question is whether they would be able to exit Gaza. “We cannot guarantee what Egypt and Israel decides,” said De Vega, referring to the details of a possible humanitarian corridor. 

“The question though, as the President also said: Papayag ba ang ating mga kababayan na hindi kasama ang kanilang mga asawa (Will our countrymen agree to leave without their spouses)?” De Vega said in the press briefing. 

The Armed Forces of the Philippines has a plan in place should repatriation for Filipinos in Gaza finally begin. 

At least 22 Filipinos working in Israel are set to return to the Philippines – not because of the war itself, but because they lost jobs as a result of the conflict. They are set to leave Tel Aviv through a commercial flight on October 16. – Rappler.com