Metro Manila, Philippines —The Philippines has placed Lebanon under Alert Level 3 as border tensions increased between Israel and Islamist group Hezbollah, the Department of Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Eduardo de Vega said Saturday.
This means that Filipinos are urged to leave Lebanon.
De Vega earlier said the Philippine Embassy in Beirut will advise Filipinos there about the voluntary repatriation progra
“We are doing this because the situation is rather tense and we already have seen it years ago in 2006 when we had to repatriate Filipinos from Lebanon,” he told CNN Philippines’ The Final Word on Friday.
There has been an ongoing exchange of fire between the Israeli forces and Lebanon-based militants, which led to the death of some Israeli soldiers and Hezbollah fighters.
The conflict between the two started after Palestinian militants fired shots from Lebanon, hours after the extremist group Hamas launched a surprise attack in Israel on Oct. 7.
The Israeli Defense Forces retaliated by attacking the Lebanese territory, which includes the areas controlled by Hezbollah. The latter then responded by firing missiles into Israel.
About 3,000 Filipinos are in southern Lebanon, the Philippine government said.
De Vega gave an assurance that there is enough budget to bring Filipinos home.
