DFA raises alert level 3 in Iraq

Crisis alert level 3 has been raised in Iraq, which means the government will facilitate the voluntary repatriation of all Filipinos in the country, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) announced on Wednesday.

“This was prompted by the higher than expected surge in terrorist and sectarian violence in Iraq following the withdrawal of United States military forces in December 2011,” the DFA said in a statement.

This covers all regions of Iraq except the northern autonomous region of Kurdistan, near the country’s border with Turkey.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario has directed the Philippine Embassy in Baghdad to get in touch and encourage all remaining overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in the country to avail of the DFA’s repatriation offer.

There are currently 192 OFWs in Iraq’s Kurdish Region and 279 in the rest of the country that are registered with the Embassy.

Under alert level 3, Filipinos who wish to leave Iraq are offered voluntary repatriation at government expense. A ban on the further deployment of OFWs is automatically imposed in coordination with the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). Filipinos are likewise advised not to travel to the affected areas while alert level 3 is in effect.

Del Rosario had been assured by Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari that Iraq is ready to provide any assistance to the Philippine Government’s repatriation efforts.

Embassy officials will also meet with the respective employers of Filipinos who will choose to stay in Iraq, in order to review the security protocols of those companies.

Source: ABS-CBN News