Philippine workers, group of foreigners evacuated from Libya by ship

The 65 overseas Filipino workers (OFW) repatriated from Libya thru the effort of the Philippine government arrive at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) on Monday (June 23, 2014) in Pasay City. (PNA photos by Avito C. Dalan)

Nearly 500 Filipino workers and a small number of foreigners were evacuated from Libya on Thursday, August 14, via a ship chartered by the Philippines, the foreign department said.

The ship rescued 449 Filipinos and 15 foreigners stranded in the North African country ripped apart by civil unrest, worsening security, and violence.

The operation, carried out from the port of Benghazi, was thus far the biggest one-time evacuation of Filipinos from Libya. The ship was headed to the port Misrata to evacuate 610 more Filipinos, after which it is scheduled to make its way to Malta.

The foreign department stressed, however, that there are still nearly 10,000 more Filipino workers who are waiting on a way out.

“The idea is, we take them out of the danger zone,” Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario told reporters.

Del Rosario added that the 15 foreigners who joined the Filipino workers at Benghazi included an American, five Spaniards, a Ukrainian, and five Maltese nationals. The nationals of the three others were unspecified.

The Secretary also warned Filipinos who remain complacent about the mandatory evacuation: “I think the Filipinos are always confident that we will come back for them, but… there will be no ship after this.”

When the ship’s mission reaches completion, approximately 3,000 Filipinos will have been repatriated since the Philippine government announced the mandatory evacuation of its nationals from the country wracked by conflict.

Evacuations by land are also ongoing, with an estimated 150 Filipinos leaving Tripoli every two days, trekking across the border to Tunisia.