346 Filipinos stranded in UAE return to Philippines

  DUBAI – A total of 346 Filipinos returned home on Wednesday (August 11) on a chartered flight from the UAE to the Philippines, authorities said. The Philippine Airline flight from Dubai landed at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport at around 8am. The flight was funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA). Two other DFA-chartered flights for stranded overseas Filipinos also landed in Davao and Cebu on the same day, bringing home a total of 1,083 people. At least 387 repatriates from Oman arrived in Davao City and were followed by another 350 passengers who landed in Cebu City from the Saudi capital of Riyadh. “It is always a good day when we get to bring home as many of our kababayans home. Today is special having mounted three chartered flights. It means more Filipinos are safe here at home, with their families and their loved ones,” said DFA Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs Sarah Lou Arriola. The latest arrivals bring to 19 the total number of DFA chartered repatriation flights since June 2021. According to the agency, another 10 repatriation flights are scheduled for August but additional flights will be mounted in succeeding months. Arriola, meanwhile, appealed to the repatriates to strictly observe and comply with the quarantine procedures prescribed by the government as cases continue to rise in the country. She then extended her gratitude to the cities of Davao and Cebu for allowing the repatriation flights at their respective airports and for providing the quarantine facilities. "If not for their generosity, the DFA could not have mounted these much-needed repatriation flights from the Middle East,” she said. The Filipino repatriates went through RT-PCR tests upon arrival and were also briefed on quarantine protocols before transferring to designated facilities for mandatory quarantine. According to the Department of Labor and Employment, a total of 641,717 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) have returned home since the start of the pandemic last year. ICA/Expat Media
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