twitter.com/ MlaStandard
facebook.com/ ManilaStandardPH
instagram.com/ manilastandard
manilastandard.net
Missed your copy of Manila Standard? Call or text our Circulation Hotline at 0917-8848655 or email: circulation@manilastandard.net For advertisement: email: advertise@manilastandard.net • 85646229
Filipina feared dead in Gaza Embassy also pushes voluntary Pinoy repatriation from Israel
By Rey Requejo, Charles Dantes, Vito Barcelo and Maricel V. Cruz
A
FILIPINO woman who was among those previously reported missing in Israel is feared dead after supposedly being caught in the clashes between government forces and Hamas militants, an official of the Philippine Embassy in Tel Aviv said Tuesday.
VOL. XXXVII • NO. 238 • 3 SECTIONS 12 PAGES • P20 • WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2023 • www.manilastandard.net • mst.daydesk@gmail.com
Hardline stance for Hamas, IDF amid air strikes PALESTINIAN terrorists from the Hamas group, which dragged off about 150 people in its surprise weekend assault on Israel, threatened to execute the hostages if Israeli air strikes continue targeting Gaza residents without warning. Israel, however, “won’t be negotiating with anyone at this crisis time in the country,” Lior Haiat, the spokesperson of the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said Tuesday in a video conference call. He said the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) “will do everything to regain security” and that Hamas “will not be allowed to launch another attack on Israel.” Hamas will also not negotiate with Israel on hostages while under continued airstrikes by the Jewish nation, Abu Obaida, spokesperson for alQassam Brigades -- the group’s armed wing – told CNN. The threat came after Israel on Monday imposed a total siege on the Gaza Strip, cutting off food, water, and electricity supplies, and sparking fears of an increasingly dire humanitarian disaster. Israel has been left reeling from Hamas’s unprecedented ground, air, and sea attacks, likening them to 9/11. Next page
THE embassy has also recommended starting the voluntary repatriation of Filipinos living in Israel to President Marcos and the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) by raising the alert level to 3 in the war-torn Gaza Strip and the suspension of travel to the Jewish state. Anthony Mandap, Deputy Chief of Mission of the PH Embassy, said they received a report that a Filipino was killed amid the skirmishes between government troops and Hamas, but the Israeli government is still verifying it. The embassy has information on the identity of the purported victim, but this needed confirmation, Man Mandap added. “Last night [we] received a report [that] a Filipino verimight have perished in the violence, but we are still veri fying that,” Mandap said in an ANC interview. “So, right now, yes, officially, it’s still six (missing Filipinos), unless of course, we confirm the news of the death of one of our Filipino caregivers here,” he added. The situation remains tense in Israel, the official said, but added that Filipinos should not panic because it is “contagious.” EdMeanwhile, Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Ed uardo de Vega said the recommendation to raise Alert Next page
TAKING A BREATHER. Two Israeli soldiers lean on a painted wall of a structure in Kfar Aza, in the south of Israel bordering the Gaza Strip on October 10. Israel said the bodies of 1,500 Islamist militants were found in southern towns recaptured by the army in grueling battles near the Palestinian enclave. AFP
House scraps P1.23b in CIF from budget of 5 agencies By Maricel V. Cruz THE House of Representatives has scrapped P1.23 billion in confidential and intelligence funds of five agencies, including that of Office of the Vice President and the Department of Education, as it realigned P194 billion in next year’s proposed budget. “We believe that the House of Representatives is on the right side of histo-
The Department of Energy (DOE) said Tuesday oil prices will continue to rise until the end of the year if supply constraints worsen due to the conflict in Israel . (Story on A2)
ry,” said Marikina Rep. Stella Quimbo, senior vice chairperson of the House appropriations committee. Quimbo said the House small commit-
tee that tackled the amendments agreed to reallocate the funds, including the CIF, to items that address the rising cost of commodities and seek to develop and protect the West Philippine Sea. “The main goal was to rationalize the allocation of resources to fight inflation, invest in human capital and in our country’s future,” she said. The scrapped CIF in the proposed 2024 budget included P500
China warns PH to take its words seriously over WPS sovereignty By Rey E. Requejo and Vince Lopez West Philippine Sea, as “irresponsible” CHINA on Monday warned the Philippines to take its words “seriously” and declared that it will do “what is necessary” to protect its interest in the South China Sea, which it claims is in violation of a UN tribunal ruling. The Chinese Foreign Ministry issued the warning Monday night as the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) labeled Beijing’s recent actions in the South China Sea, particularly in the
T R A NSP ORTATION Secretary Jaime Bautista appointed a temporary head of the
Next page
Next page
As DOTr sorts bribery mess, Leynes to head LTFRB By Darwin G. Amojelar, Rio Araja and Macon Ramos-Araneta
and said they could lead to its “global isolation.” “China once again urges the Philippines to take seriously China’s concerns,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry said, in a statement. Beijing also called on Manila to “stop making provocations and creating troubles at sea, and stop groundless attacks and smears.” China had repeatedly ignored the
Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) as the agency addresses allegations of corruption and other irregularities. Bautista said Mercy Paras Leynes will serve as officer-in-charge chairperson of the LTFRB until Oct. 9, 2024. Leynes, a lawyer by profession and
board member of the LTFRB prior to her designation, will replace LTFRB chairman Teofilo Guadiz III. Guadiz was suspended by President Marcos on Monday amid allegations of a “lagay” or bribing system in the agency’s Public Utility Vehicle Modernization Program (PUVMP). Next page
NAVAL EXERCISES.
Officers on board BRP Antonio Luna (inset) help navigate ships from the Philippine, American and Australian navies (main photo) during the SAMASAMA multilateral exercises among the allies in the West Philippine Sea on Tuesday. PH Navy photos
Hacked PhilHealth data shared illicitly, says NPC By Othel V. Campos
New LTFRB officer-in-charge Mercy Paras Leynes
ing “shared illicitly,” reports received by the country’s privacy watchdog THE data from the Philippine Health showed. The National Privacy Commission Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) leaked on Tuesday issued a “critical warning” by hackers in the dark web was be-
to individuals or groups against spreading the leaked personal data following the Medusa ransomware attack on PhilHealth systems. Next page