Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte received Israel Ambassador to the Philippines Ilan Fluss at the office of the Department of Education (DepEd), paying her respects to the victims in the conflict between Israel and Hamas, as well as thanking the Israeli government for its support to the families of the Filipinos slain in the war.

(Photo from Inday Sara Duterte's Facebook page)

In a Facebook post on Wednesday, Oct. 25, the official shared about the courtesy visit of the Israeli ambassador.

The Vice President posted photos of their meeting, together with their delegations.

“Pinaabot ko ang aking pakikidalamhati sa lahat ng mga nasawi sa patuloy na pagtutunggali (I extended my condolences to all who perished in the continuing conflict),” she wrote.

“Pinasalamatan ko rin sila sa pagkilala sa katapangan ng ating mga kababayang Pilipino na nasawi at sa tulong na pinaaabot ng kanilang pamahalaan sa mga naiwang pamilya na halos mga ‘breadwinners’ nila (I also thanked them for recognizing the courage of the Filipinos who died and for the assistance their government provided to the families of these “breadwinners”),” she added.

Duterte also expressed hope for a peaceful resolution of the violence that erupted between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which launched an attack on Israel last Oct. 7.

The ongoing strife, including Israel’s retaliation, caused thousands of civilian deaths and displaced several Palestinians living in Gaza.

“Patuloy tayong sumuporta para sa mapayapang solusyon na makakatulong sa pangmatagalang kapayapaan dahil ang pangunahing biktima ay ang mga inosenteng sibilyan lalo na ang mga bata (We continue supporting for a peaceful solution that will help for a lasting peace because the primary victims are innocent civilians, especially children),” she said.

Aside from the Israel-Hamas conflict, where four Filipinos already died, Fluss and the Vice President discussed Israel’s support for the education reforms currently being introduced by Duterte, who sits as education chief in a concurrent capacity.

“Sa larangan ng edukasyon, napagusapan namin ang patuloy na pagtutulungan at kolaborasyon sa pagitan ng Pilipinas at Israel (In the field of education, we talked about our continued cooperation and collaboration between the Philippines and Israel),” she wrote.