Gov’t doing everything to find missing Filipina

President Marcos said the government is leaving no stone unturned to locate a missing female Filipino dual citizen who is believed to be held hostage by the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

The President gave the assurance to the family of Noralyn Babadilla following the release of a Filipino who was held captive in Gaza for over a month now.

“I am overjoyed to confirm that a Filipino, Mr. Gelienor ‘Jimmy’ Pacheco, was among the first group of 24 hostages released by Hamas yesterday,” Marcos said on his official X (formerly Twitter) account.

Pacheco, 33, was taken hostage on Oct. 7.

“We remain concerned over the whereabouts of our other national, Ms. Noralyn Babadilla, and are sparing no effort to locate and secure her if she is indeed found to be one of the hostages,” the President said.

Speaker Martin Romualdez said Pacheco’s release “ignites our hopes for the prompt discovery of the whereabouts of another missing national, Noralyn Babadilla.”

“Echoing the Philippine Foreign Service’s commitment during this distressing period, we, in the House and the national government, vow to persistently engage with international partners and leverage our Middle Eastern assets until every Filipino is safe from the region’s turmoil,” Romualdez said.

“We pray for the continued success of the truce and for all hostages to be released,” he added.

Babadilla was staying at the kibbutz with her partner when she was abducted by Hamas rebels.

Mr. Marcos said Pacheco is “safe” and already in the custody of the Philippine Embassy in Israel.

Philippine Ambassador to Israel Pedro Laylo Jr., together with senior representatives of the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, welcomed Pacheco who was freed together with a group of Thai nationals.

Hamas and the Israeli government agreed to a prisoner exchange deal early Wednesday after almost six hours of debate.

Hamas fighters were set to release a second group of hostages Saturday in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, officials said, as the truce largely held in the devastated Gaza Strip after seven weeks of war that killed thousands of people.

Israeli prison authorities said 42 Palestinian inmates – both male and female – would be freed under the terms of the agreement, which mandates exchanges at a ratio of three to one.

An Israeli official source said 14 hostages would be handed over.

The transfers follow an initial exchange Friday, the first day of a four-day truce that largely silenced the guns on both sides. — with AFP