Manila, June 20 -- The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) called on private recruitment agencies (PRAs) to temporarily delay the deployment of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to conflict-affected countries in the Middle East, citing worsening security and travel restrictions in the region.

In Advisory No. 19, Series of 2025 released on Thursday, the DMW reiterated deployment restrictions to Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, and Iran, and urging PRAs to prioritize OFWs' safety and suspend sending processed workers to these areas until further notice.

"Right now, we're on Alert Level 2 in Israel, which means new hires are prohibited but pwede ang returning (but returning are allowed)," Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac said in a news rel...