PH Expresses Gratitude to Iraqi Authorities for Swift Rescue of Two OFWs Kidnapped by Gunmen

09 July 2018 – The Department of Foreign Affairs today expressed its gratitude to authorities in Iraq for the swift and successful rescue of two Filipinos who were reported to have been kidnapped there three days ago.

In a statement, the DFA said Iraqi authorities informed the Philippine Embassy in Baghdad on Sunday that the two Filipinas are now under police custody after they were rescued in Diyala Province north of the capital on Saturday.

“We thank God for the successful rescue of our two kababayan,” Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter S. Cayetano said in a statement issued shortly after he was informed of the development.

“Their safe recovery would not have been possible without the swift response of our Iraqi friends and for that we are very grateful,” Secretary Cayetano said.

In his report to Secretary Cayetano, Chargé d’Affaires Julius Torres said the Embassy was informed by authorities in Diyala Province that the two were rescued from members of a criminal group who forcibly took them on Friday.

Chargé d’Affaires Torres said authorities told the Embassy several members of the group were arrested during the police rescue operation and that charges were being prepared against them.

Chargé d’Affaires Torres said the Embassy has requested Iraqi authorities access to the two rescued women and the two other Filipinas who were earlier reported to have been taken into custody after escaping from the same armed men who took them.

According to reports received by the Embassy, the four Filipinas came from Erbil in the norther Kurdistan Region and were on their way to Baghdad when their vehicle encountered the armed men along the highway in Uzem District between Kirkuk and Diyala.

The reports said the women were taken by the armed men after their driver abandoned their vehicle. However, two of the four women were reportedly able to escape from their captors.

Chargé d’Affaires Torres said the Embassy would request custody of the four women as soon as the police investigation is concluded so that they could immediately be repatriated.

The Embassy estimated that there are 4,000 Filipinos working in Iraq, with around 3,000 based in Kurdistan. END