One Filipino crew member remains unaccounted for after a tugboat responding to a vessel in distress was attacked in waters near the Strait of Hormuz, the Department of Migrant Workers confirmed.
The missing seafarer was aboard an assisting tugboat, not the originally targeted vessel. Crew members from the ship that was first attacked have been reported safe, but the Filipino crew member from the rescue vessel has yet to be located. Around 6,400 other Filipino seafarers on ships operating in the broader region have been monitored and accounted for.
Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac said his department, together with the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration and relevant regional offices, had already reached out to the seafarer’s relatives. “Our team a few days ago had already visited the family’s home and assured them of our full support during these difficult times while we await the results of the search and rescue at sea,” Cacdac said.
The DMW said the assistance was extended in line with directives from President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.
The incident comes as the DMW’s Advisory No. 11, series of 2026, remains in effect, formally classifying the Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz, and Gulf of Oman as Warlike Operations Areas following a determination by the Warlike Operations Area Committee of the International Bargaining Forum. Under that designation, Filipino seafarers are entitled to decline assignments to those waters, and shipowners are obligated to enforce heightened security protocols along with appropriate compensation and benefits for crew deployed in the affected zones.
