logo
Ilonggo seafarers who survive Red Sea attack return home

Ilonggo seafarers who survive Red Sea attack return home

GMA Network21-07-2025
Three of four Ilonggo crew members of a cargo ship attacked by Houthi rebels at the Red Sea in Yemen have come home to Iloilo.
Their families met them along with officials of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) 6 and Public Employment Service Office-Iloilo.
One of them is Rodmel Canto from the Municipality of Oton, while the others are from San Miguel and Iloilo City.
The Ilonggo crew members of MV Eternity C survived the attack on July 8, 2025.
The fourth Ilonggo seafarer from San Miguel has chosen to stay in Metro Manila yet, as of this writing.
However, the three Ilonggo seafarers refused GMA Regional TV One Western Visayas an interview. According to OWWA 6, they will continue to coordinate with the three for psychosocial counseling.
Meanwhile, the search for four other crew members from Western Visayas who are among 13 missing persons continues, as of posting time.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

DMW files plunder raps vs ex-OWWA chief Arnell Ignacio, 8 others over land deal
DMW files plunder raps vs ex-OWWA chief Arnell Ignacio, 8 others over land deal

GMA Network

time4 hours ago

  • GMA Network

DMW files plunder raps vs ex-OWWA chief Arnell Ignacio, 8 others over land deal

The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) on Tuesday filed plunder and graft charges against former Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) administrator Arnell Ignacio and eight others over the controversial P1.4-billion land acquisition deal. Filed before the Office of the Ombudsman, the complaint also accused Ignacio, his two former deputies at OWWA, and six individuals who belong to the seller group of malversation of public funds. The DMW said the complaint stemmed from the purchase of a 1.5-hectare property near Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 1 in September 2024, on which a halfway house for returning overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) would be constructed. However, the DMW said that the property's close proximity to the airport runway made it unsuitable for development. The DMW added that OWWA's board of directors was not consulted and did not authorize the contract to sell, the deed of sale, and the supplemental agreement in connection with the purchase of the property. Vouchers and checks were also signed prior to the deed of sale, DMW Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac said. Ignacio, who was removed from his post, denied in May that the land sale was anomalous and that he profited from it. —VBL, GMA Integrated News

DFA: Some Pinoys among crew shown in Houthi video
DFA: Some Pinoys among crew shown in Houthi video

GMA Network

time7 hours ago

  • GMA Network

DFA: Some Pinoys among crew shown in Houthi video

Some Filipino seafarers were among the individuals shown in a video released by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels, who earlier claimed to have rescued crew members from the cargo vessel Eternity C after sinking it in the Red Sea, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) confirmed Tuesday. 'Yes, meron,' DFA Undersecretary Eduardo De Vega told GMA News Online in response to a query on whether Filipinos were among those featured in the footage. However, De Vega said the exact number and identities of the Filipinos seen in the video remain unverified as of now. 'Ask DMW [Department of Migrant Workers] for confirmation as to their number or identities. Not all the 11 are Pinoys,' he added. On Monday, the Houthis released video clips and images showing 10 crew members they claim to have 'rescued' from the Eternity C, one of two commercial vessels struck by the rebel group earlier this month. According to the Houthi statement, 11 mariners in total were recovered from the sea, including two who sustained injuries and were provided medical care. One body found aboard the vessel before it sank was also brought to a hospital morgue. The attacks mark a renewed phase in the Houthis' campaign against ships they allege are linked to Israel — a campaign that had paused briefly but has since intensified amid the ongoing war in Gaza. A separate strike also hit another ship, the Magic Seas. EU naval task force Operation Aspides previously reported that 15 of the 25 crew members on the Eternity C remained missing, with four presumed dead. Washington has since accused the Houthis of kidnapping the missing crew, while Human Rights Watch described the attacks and unlawful detention of seafarers as potential war crimes. One Filipino survivor, Cocoy, had earlier recounted his ordeal in an interview, describing the moment a Houthi missile struck the ship. 'Akala ko po mamamatay na ako (I thought I was going to die.),' the seafarer said, noting that he was off-duty and resting in his cabin when the captain's voice boomed over the intercom of the cargo ship: "We are under attack". The July 6 assault on the Greek-owned Magic Seas broke a months-long lull in attacks by Yemen's Houthi rebels on Red Sea shipping, which began after the start of the Gaza war in October 2023. Crew members scrambled to reach the "muster station" at the center of the ship, considered the safest place should a projectile strike the vessel. GMA News Online has reached out to both the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) for further confirmation, but has yet to receive a response as of posting. — BAP, GMA Integrated News

Yemen's Huthis release footage of missing crew from sunken Eternity C ship
Yemen's Huthis release footage of missing crew from sunken Eternity C ship

GMA Network

timea day ago

  • GMA Network

Yemen's Huthis release footage of missing crew from sunken Eternity C ship

A vessel said to be Greek-operated, Liberia-flagged MV Eternity C sinks in a video footage released by Yemen's Houthis, in the Red Sea, in this screen grab taken from a handout video released on July 9, 2025. The vessel had 21 Filipino crew members, more than half of whom remain missing as of July 10, 2025. HOUTHI MEDIA CENTER/Handout via REUTERS/File photo SANAA, Yemen - Yemen's Iran-backed Huthis released video footage Monday of missing crew members from the Eternity C cargo ship, which the rebels sank earlier this month, claiming in an accompanying statement to have "rescued" the mariners. Earlier this month, the Huthis struck the Magic Seas and Eternity C cargo ships in the Red Sea, after a months-long hiatus in a campaign against maritime traffic they accuse of having links to Israel, launched over the Gaza war. The European Union's Operation Aspides naval task force told AFP that 15 out of the 25 crew were still missing -- with four of them presumed dead. In the video, the Huthis showed pictures of 10 crew members they said they had "rescued". "Eleven crew members were rescued at sea, including two injured who were provided with medical care. One body, found aboard the ship before it sank, was transported to the hospital morgue," the Huthis said in their statement. Last week, Human Rights Watch said the rebels were unlawfully detaining the crew and that their attacks on shipping amounted to war crimes. The United States has accused the Huthis of kidnapping the missing crew members. — Agence France-Presse

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store