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EL NIÑO MAY RETURN, LAWYERS SEEK BLUE MANILA TO CUT FUEL PUSH TEMPERATURES RIBBON DRAFT REPORT USE AMID IRAN CRISIS WORLD / A6
NEWS / A3
NEWS / A3
VOL. XL • NO. 21 • 3 SECTIONS 16 PAGES • P20 • TUESDAY, MARCH 3, 2026 •
IMPEACHMENT PUSH. Protesters call for the impeachment of Vice President Sara Duterte outside the House of Representatives in Quezon City on Monday, March 2, 2026. AFP
Conflict with Iran may last 4 weeks—Trump
Tensions escalate: Iran targets Gulf states, Israel hits Lebanon
U
NITED States President Donald Trump said the conflict with Iran may continue for four weeks as he vowed to avenge the deaths of three US soldiers killed during the operations while warning that more casualties were likely. Trump said he envisaged a fourweek military operation against Iran, where US and Israeli strikes have killed the country's supreme leader and crippled its defense capabilities. "It's always been a four-week process. We figured it will be four weeks or so," he told British newspaper the Daily Mail during a round of interviews. The US president also called on Iranians to rise up, saying: "America is with you." He warned the country's Revolutionary Guards to surrender or face "certain death.” In response, Iran said it "will not negotiate with the United States," according to Ali Larijani, the powerful head of Tehran's Supreme National Security Council. He said Trump's "delusional fantasies" had plunged the region into chaos. China, for its part, called on Monday for a ceasefire and diplomatic talks to end the conflict in the Middle East, as officials in Beijing confirmed one citizen had been killed in Iran. "The most urgent task is a cessation of military operations and preventing a spillover of conflict," foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning told a news conference. Russia also urged a ceasefire, slamming attacks on civilian targets across the region. "We advocate the immediate cessation of hostilities by all parties,"
THE House Committee on Justice on Monday declared two remaining impeachment complaints against Vice President Sara Duterte sufficient in form, allowing the proceedings to move forward after setting aside one complaint and approving the withdrawal of another. In separate motions without objection, the panel ruled that the complaints filed by Father Jose Saballa et al. and lawyer Nathaniel Cabrera met the formal requirements under House
Impact of US-Israel-Iran conflict on PH PH bracing for full-scale repatriation; 1 OFW killed THE government has stepped up rescue and repatriation preparations for hundreds of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in the Middle East as fighting between the United States, Israel and Iran disrupts air travel and heightens security risks across the region. Hans Leo Cacdac, Secretary of the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW), said the agency is acting under the directive of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and is closely coordinating with the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), the Department of National Defense, and Philippine Next page posts abroad.
GRIEF FOR CIVILIAN CASUALTIES. First responders inspect a building (upper photo) damaged in an Israeli airstrike in the southern suburb of Haret Hreik of Beirut on March 2, 2026. Israel bombarded Lebanon, expanding conflict across the region after the massive Israel-US attack on Iran. Meanwhile, in Israel, the body of Oren Katz is carried away or burial during his funeral the day after a missile attack on Bet Shemesh, some 30 kilometers west of Jerusalem. AFP
DOTr readies fuel subsidy as oil prices continue to rise
Remulla confirms meet with ICC staff after Rody sent to The Hague OMBUDSMAN Jesus Crispin Remulla on Monday admitted that he met
By Maricel V. Cruz
Next page
Next page
By Pot Chavez and Ram Superable
House panel rules 2 impeach raps vs. VP Sara sufficient in form
with former senator Antonio Trillanes IV and personnel of the International Criminal Court last year to discuss the safety of witnesses, but denied the government connived with the ICC to have former President Rodrigo Duterte
arrested. Remulla said the meeting took place at his residence when he was still Justice secretary, and after Duterte was already brought to The Hague. “It’s true, I talked with Trillanes.
He introduced me to two ICC personnel because we had an understanding that the witnesses must be protected. Since we are in the DOJ, we had to do it. They are Filipinos,” Remulla said. Next page
Ombudsman orders probe of flood project linked to Nancy Binay, aide By Vito Barcelo
DANCE FOR WOMEN’S RIGHTS. Members of the Gabriela Women's Party lead the One Billion Rising dance with women lawmakers and staff members at the House of Representatives.
THE Office of the Ombudsman has ordered a swift investigation of alleged irregularities in flood-control projects linked to Nancy Binay and Carleen Yap-Villa, following the submission of what former Department of Public Works and Highways Undersecretary Roberto Bernardo described as “damning evidence.” Central to the case are multiple sworn affidavits submitted by Bernardo, who claimed that Yap-Villa, a former staff
member in Binay’s Senate office and later a department head at Makati City Hall, acted as a direct intermediary between Binay and DPWH officials. Bernardo asserted that Yap-Villa facilitated communications, negotiated arrangements, and handled kickback solicitations tied to project approvals. In a memorandum issued by Ombudsman Jesus Crispin Remulla, the General Investigation Bureau (GIB) was instructed to expedite proceedings, citing converging findings from Next page
THE government on Monday convened an emergency meeting with oil companies amid fears of sharp fuel price hikes – of as much as four pesos a liter next week -- as tensions in the Middle East roiled global energy markets and threatened supply flows through the Strait of Hormuz. Meanwhile, Transportation Secretary Giovanni Lopez has directed the road transport sector to complete documentation to allow the immediate release of continuing 2025 fuel subsidies once the threshold of $80 per barrel of crude oil in the world Next page market is breached.
No direct threat to PH security, EDCA sites—NSC MALACAÑANG on Monday said there is no verified direct threat to Philippine territory amid statements from Iran about striking American military bases, clarifying that sites under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA) are Philippine facilities and not US bases. Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro said questions regarding possible military strikes should be directed to the Department of National Defense but read an official statement from the National Security Council clarifying the status of EDCA locations. Next page