Cadiz City, Philippines - Ilan Fluss, the Israeli Ambassador to the Philippines, recently visited the family of Loreta Alacre, a Negrense caregiver who was killed during the Hamas attacks in Israel in October of last year. The visit occurred in Cadiz City and was part of Fluss' five-day trip to Negros Occidental.
According to Philippines News Agency, his first activity upon arriving in the region was to meet with Alacre's family in Cadiz. Loreta Alacre, who was 49 at the time of her death, had been working in Israel for approximately 15 years and was at the Supernova Music Festival near the Gaza Strip when the attacks occurred. She left behind six sisters and a brother in Sitio Camay-an, Barangay Cadiz Viejo.
During his visit, Fluss also met with Cadiz City Mayor Salvador Escalante Jr. and visited an evacuation center that the city government named after Alacre as a tribute to her. The Loreta V. Alacre Evacuation Center marker was unveiled at Cadiz Viejo National High School, Alacre’s alma mater, on the same day as her interment on November 5.
Fluss remarked on the resilience of the Alacre family, noting that despite their sorrow, they displayed a steadfast spirit and had received support from both the Israeli and local government officials, as well as from the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration.
Additionally, Fluss shared a personal connection to the Philippines, noting that Bacolod City was the hometown of his children’s former nanny, who worked for their family during his first diplomatic assignment in the Philippines in the 1990s. He acknowledged the ongoing need for Filipino workers in Israel, although the deployment of new overseas Filipino workers to the country is currently on hold.