OWWA: 35 Pinoy repatriates from Libya expected in PHL Thursday

The 35 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who managed to leave strife-torn Tripoli in Libya last week are expected to arrive in the Philippines on Thursday, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA said). According to a report on radio dzRH on Monday afternoon, OWWA head Carmelita Dimzon said they are preparing for the arrival of the Pinoy repatriates who will be flying in from Cairo in Egypt, where they were brought after their exit from Tripoli. The dzRH report quoted Dimzon as saying the 35 OFWs are having their travel documents and visas processed for the flight home. Dimzon said the the OWWA has readied P10,000 in assistance to each of them upon their arrival. Last week, the 35 joined other foreign nationals in boarding a ship chartered by the International Organization for Migration (IOM). Gaddafi still a threat Meanwhile, according to a report of Reuters on Monday, Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, who has not been seen since rebels took over the Libyan capital of Tripoli a week ago, is still a threat to the country and the world. The statement was made by the chairman of the National Transitional Council (NTC) in Libya on Monday. Speaking at a meeting in Doha, Qatar, of defence ministers from countries supporting the insurgency against Gaddafi's rule, NTC Chairman Mustafa Abdel Jalil called on NATO to keep supporting the movement. "I call for continued protection from NATO and its allies from this tyrant," Abdel Jalil said. "He is still a threat, not just for Libyans but for the entire world." The NTC, which is hunting Libya's deposed leader and pushing to take over his hometown of Sirte east of Tripoli, said on Saturday it had no firm information on his whereabouts. It has offered a $1.3 million reward and amnesty from prosecution for anyone who kills or captures Gaddafi. As the rebels consolidate their grip on the vast North African country, Abdel Jalil has been in Europe, Benghazi and Doha to push for ongoing support for the campaign and discuss the shape of a post-Gaddafi Libya. NATO, whose bombing campaign was a key element in the rebels' success, said at the same meeting in Doha that it would continue its mission. "We believe the Gaddafi regime is near collapse, and we're committed to seeing the operation through to its conclusion," said U.S. Admiral Samuel Locklear, commander of NATO's Joint Operations Command. - with a report from Reuters, VVP, GMA News