Abu dhabi: The Philippine Embassies in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, and Jordan instructed Filipinos in their jurisdictions to limit movement as Iran bombards several United States bases in the Middle East in retaliation to a joint Israeli-US military operation on Saturday. Explosions were heard in parts of the Middle East, including Abu Dhabi in UAE, Manama in Bahrain, and Kuwait, while local authorities activated sirens and issued alerts to residents.
According to Philippines News Agency, the Israeli-US and Iranian exchange of strikes officially marked a major escalation in a years-long tension over Tehran's nuclear program. Flight-tracking platform Flightradar24 reported that several airspaces are currently closed, including those of Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, UAE, and Qatar. Local reports indicated that the Iranian military has so far launched missile attacks on Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, Al Salem Base in Kuwait, Al Dhafra Air Base in the UAE, and the US 5th Fleet Base in Bahrain.
Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Ma. Theresa Lazaro expressed the Philippine government's concern over the escalation and called on all parties to 'resort immediately' to dialogue and negotiations. As of posting time, the DFA stated that there are no Filipinos affected or harmed in the strikes, and that the Philippine Embassies in Tehran, Iran, and Tel Aviv, Israel are also 'on full alert.'
