Hello, everyone @here! I hope you all are having a great Sunday night. This is a good read written by Multimedia reporter Bea Cupin: 'They were victims of a ruthless espionage scheme and of poverty and lack of opportunity — but they were also, no doubt, traitors' https://www.rappler.com/voices/newsletters/inside-the-newsroom-filipino-spies-chinese-espionage-investigation/

PH EMBASSY CHECKING REPORTED ARREST OF FILIPINOS IN UAE @here

In a post on Sunday, March 16, the Philippine Embassy in Abu Dhabi and the Consulate General in Dubai said they were "closely monitoring reports that Filipino nationals are among those arrested for posting and sharing videos and other online content related to the recent attacks and air defense interceptions in Dubai."

"Philippine officials have sought official confirmation and further details from the competent UAE authorities regarding the identity, status, and legal circumstances of any Filipino nationals involved," it added.

The embassy and consulate remind Filipinos working in the UAE to "exercise utmost caution and responsibility in their use of social media and messaging platforms."

They added: "Filipinos are advised to refrain from recording, posting, forwarding, or commenting on unverified or sensitive security‑related content; to avoid spreading rumors or speculative information and to rely only on official announcements of UAE authorities and credible news sources for information on ongoing security situations."

UAE officials had earlier reminded the public "that publishing or sharing misleading or fabricated security‑related content, including videos of air defence interceptions, attacks on landmarks, or AI‑generated false footage, is a criminal offense punishable by imprisonment and substantial fines," said the embassy.

PH expects 2,000 repatriates by weekend, 7,300 seafarers marked safe

Authorities expect a total of 2,000 successful government-sponsored repatriates by the end of the week, they mentioned during a press briefing on Tuesday, March 17.

“We’re expecting by the end of the week, or start of next week, Sunday… at around 2,000 govt-sponsored repatriation, and that’s around the number of requests for repatriation that we have confirmed,” Patricia Yvonne Cunanan, Overseas Workers Welfare Association (OWWA) Administrator, confirmed.

They’re also expecting six commercial flights to arrive in the Philippines today, carrying around 75 Filipinos.

Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac also shared that 7,255 workers have already been given basic and other forms of assistance since their operations started in late February.

Furthermore, the DMW and OWWA also shared that they have monitored 7,300 seafarers in and around the Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz, and Gulf of Oman – all of whom were marked safe. They are also now allowed the right to refuse sailing.

As for the missing seafarer in the Strait of Hormuz, Cacdac said, “We’re looking into the matter. Ganon na lang muna. We’re looking into the national sea-based rules on the matter.”

Read more about the how repatriation works, and what awaits repatriates when they arrive in the Philippines: https://www.rappler.com/philippines/overseas-filipinos/things-to-know-government-assistance-repatriation-ofws-middle-east/ @here

LOOK: Marcos welcomes Bhutan Prime Minister to Malacañang

Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay of Bhutan visited Malacañang Palace on March 19, the first leaders engagement between the Philippines and Bhutan since diplomatic relations were established in 2025.

In a post on social media, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. says of the meeting: "A good step forward as we begin building stronger ties in trade, tourism, vocational education, and technical cooperation between our peoples. We are off to a promising start."

Iran will not be rebuilt nor will they get nukes

AFP chief: PH-Japan partnership essential to regional peace and prosperity

Military chief General Romeo Brawner, Jr speaks before a forum to commemorate 70 years of Japan-PH normalization of diplomatic ties. 

AFP chief General Romeo Brawner, Jr: “Amid rising tensions in other regions of the world, we must remain steadfast in pursuing peace, stability... through our partnership, we show that security can be strengthened without escalation, disputes managed without coercion, and trust built through openness and accountability.” 

Updates on the repatriation of overseas Filipinos in the Middle East

The Department of Foreign Affairs has received around 1,200 repatriation requests from overseas Filipinos in various countries in the Middle East as of 2 pm on Wednesday, March 24.

Consisting of non-working Filipinos, 613 have been repatriated and/or assisted, while 586 requests are still pending. Most requests came from Dubai and Doha, Qatar.

See photo for the full list:

Update on OFWs in the Middle East: Gov’t to ramp up charter flights

The government aims to increase the number of chartered flights from one to two per week to accommodate overseas Filipinos who requested repatriation from the Middle East, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said in a presidential address on Wednesday, March 25.

“We will continue to do this until the war ends or until we have repatriated all of our nationals back home to the Philippines,” Marcos said.

Since the war conflict between the United States and Israel against Iran began on February 28, the government has successfully operated four chartered flights.

As of March 25, around 2,000 overseas Filipino workers have been repatriated, and 16,000 have received aid in the form of food, shelter, medical care, transportation, and financial support.

Out of more than a thousand requests as of March 24, 649 are still awaiting repatriation. @here

LOOK: The Silang in Sydney 

The Philippines’ BRP Diego Silang opens its doors to members of the Filipino community as part of its activities while in Sydney, Australia. According to the Navy, the Silang and her crew organized a guided ship tour, which included areas like the gundeck, crew’s mess, and hangar. 

The Silang is the Navy’s newest and most modern guided-missile frigate. The South Korea-made Philippine warship is part of the month-long Exercise Kakadu in Australia.   

According to Australia’s defense ministry, the Silang is the first Philippine Navy ship to enter Sydney harbour. 

Photos courtesy of the Philippine Navy