Press Release

PR-48-2015

07 April 2015

Department of Foreign Affairs Evacuates 3rd Batch of 44 from Yemen

Filipino evacuees arrive at the hotel in Jizan on 7 April after a land trip from Yemen.

(Riyadh, 07 April 2015)  A third batch composed of 43 Filipinos and 1 Yemeni spouse of a Filipino national crossed the Yemeni-Saudi border at Tuwal on the Saudi side at about 230PM, constituting the 3rd batch of Filipino evacuees from Yemen.

The third batch brings the total to 383 Filipinos and 3 Yemeni spouses or 386 evacuated since 5 April 2015.  This batch included 31 adult males, 11 adult females, and two minor children.  The Filipinos evacuees originated from the Yemeni cities of Hodeidah, Taiz, Aden and Hajjah and converged in the western coastal city of Hodiedah. 

The evacuees left Hodeidah in one bus at 730AM this morning and were led by Philippine Embassy Attache Mel Balladolid and Philippine Honorary Consul Mohamad Al-Jamal. 

So far, the Crisis Management Team in Yemen composed of DFA officers and personnel from the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh and the Philippine Consulate General in Jeddah have organised 3 batches of land evacuations of Filipinos and Yemeni spouse.  The first group included 99 that left Yemen on 5 April, followed by a group of 243 from the capital Sana’a on 6 April, and today 7 April was the third batch of 44 originating from Hodeidah.

The Philippine government has provided accommodations for the evacuees in Jizan, and is arranging their repatriation flights to the Philippines.

The Philippine Embassy has arranged for 90 evacuees to leave Jizan for Manila on 8 April.   This is the first group that will return safely to the Philippines.

Ezzedin Tago Philippine Ambassador to Saudi Arabia and Yemen meets Filipinos in Aden during his visit to Aden on 22-24 March 2105.  14 Filipinos from Aden have been evacuated.