[Arab News] A total of 240 Filipinos out of the 464 have been evacuated from war-torn Yemen since April 5, Philippines Ambassador Ezzedin H. Tago has said. Among those evacuated, by land through the Saudi-Yemen border, were nine other foreigners, Tago told Arab News from Jazan."The last batch was evacuated on April 9 and included 79 Filipinos and six foreigners," he said, adding that the foreigners included four Singaporeans, a Yemeni couple and an Egyptian nurse.
"They started their trip from Sanaa in the morning and arrived in Saudi Arabia in the evening of the same day," the envoy said. The group was assisted at the border by a team from the Consulate General led by acting Consul General Leo Tito L. Ausan Jr. The embassy in Riyadh arranged their flights from Jazan to Riyadh and Manila.
"I wish to thank the Saudi government for allowing entry of evacuees from Yemen through the Tuwal border and granting them transit visas," Tago said.
The processing at the Saudi-Yemeni border has been generally smooth, he said. "There are composite teams from the embassy and the consulate at the border to assist in the processing of entry of Filipino evacuees."
Tago said that at present, three Filipinos in Sanaa and 42 in Saada, northern Yemen, have registered for repatriation. "The Philippine Embassy's crisis management team in Sanaa, led by Consul Winston Dean Almeda, is arranging for the next group of evacuees, mainly from Saada," he said.
Tago appealed to all Filipinos in Yemen to immediately contact the embassy team to arrange for their evacuation.
"I was in Yemen from March 20 to April 5 to urge all Filipinos there to leave and avail themselves of the mandatory repatriation. Starting in October 2014, the Philippine government raised the alert level to 3 and advised everyone to leave Yemen," he said.