261 OFWs from Syria arrive in Manila
-A A +AThursday, October 18, 2012
MANILA – A total 261 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) affected by the conflict in Syria arrived Thursday at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
The second largest batch of OFWs arrived on board Jordanian Aviation Airlines Flight JAV4371 at 7:55 a.m.
The flight was chartered by the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
Overseas Workers Welfare Administration administrator Carmelita Dimzon said Syrian President Bashar al-Assad granted the request of the Philippine government to allow the repatriation of the latest batch of the Filipino workers.
The OFWs were temporarily housed at the Filipino Workers Resource Center in Damascus when the Syrian leader decided to forego the exit visa requirements of the war-displaced Filipino workers.
The Foreign Affairs department has also played part in the successful repatriations of the OFWs.
Last September, the first batch of OFWs numbering 263 arrived from Syria also on board the IOM-chartered flight.
The Filipino officials were still negotiating with their Syrian counterparts for the release of the remaining Filipinos trapped in the war-torn country.
The arrival of the 261 OFWs brought the total repatriated Filipinos to 2,532 from Syria. (PNA)
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