(Eagle News) — Almost 10,000 Filipinos abroad were repatriated by the government in the first days of this month.
The Department of Foreign Affairs said the 9,981 overseas Filipinos figure was as of December 1 to 5.
The DFA said the breakdown is as follows:
8,432 (84.48%) from the Middle East
843 (8.45%) from Asia and the Pacific; and
706 (7.07%) from Europe
According to the department, five medical repatriations were made from Bahrain, Japan, Oman, Russia, and Thailand.
It said it also assisted in the return of a Filipino family, including two minors, from Iraq, 11 distressed students from Indonesia, and three undocumented OFWs/trafficking victims from Syria.
The DFA said it stands ready to “assist our distressed overseas Filipinos who wish to come home, wherever they are in the world.”
