By Roy Mabasa A total of 2,281 Filipino repatriates from six different countries across the world who were affected by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic safely returned on separate flights at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminals 1 and 2 throughout Monday, June 15. (DFA / MANILA BULLETIN) The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) welcomed the repatriates, many of them stranded in foreign countries due to travel restrictions following the COVID-19 pandemic. They came from Lebanon, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Barbados, Germany, and the Netherlands. The returning Filipinos underwent the mandatory COVID-19 testing upon their arrival, except for the seafarers from Barbados whose manning agency arranged their COVID-19 testing to be done at the quarantine facility by a private provider. Upon arrival, the repatriates were briefed on quarantine protocols before they were transported to their respective designated facilities where they will undergo mandatory quarantine procedures mandated by the Inter-Agency Task Force. “The DFA, together with its Philippine embassies and consulates around the world, continues to work with the various national agencies in assisting our Filipinos around the world amid the ongoing COVID-19 crisis,” it said. To date, the Philippine government has already repatriated around 40,000 Filipinos from various parts of the world, mostly sea-based and land-based workers.