MANILA, July 3 (Xinhua) -- The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) of the Philippines urged the Filipinos in Tripoli, Libya, to heighten their vigilance and take the necessary precautions after some 40 people were killed at an airstrike at a migrant detention center early Wednesday.
According to the Philippine embassy in Tripoli, the airstrike took place in Tajoura District, about five km from a hospital compound where around 40 Filipino nurses and their dependents were staying.
Embassy Chargé d'Affaires Elmer Cato said there were no Filipinos reported among the casualties. The detention center, which was located next to a military camp, housed mostly African migrants, he added.
The Philippine embassy advised Filipinos residing or working near military facilities or formations to take added precautions and to relocate if necessary in the wake of the announcement by the Libyan National Army (LNA) that they will be carrying out more airstrikes against military targets inside Tripoli.
There are an estimated 1,000 Filipinos in the Libyan capital and its immediate outskirts, most of them nurses and other hospital workers.
Cato said the Philippine embassy remains concerned about the safety of the Filipinos who could not be convinced to temporarily leave their workplaces which are in areas where fighting has been taking place.
On last Sunday, Cato said 11 Filipino nurses sought shelter at the Philippine embassy after fighting again broke out near their hospital south of Tripoli. Another six Filipinos have requested assistance in getting repatriated due to the fighting, he added.
The Philippines has been urging the Filipinos to leave Tripoli since renewed fighting broke out in the outskirts of the Libyan capital.
