"The Philippines on Tuesday suspended the deployment of Philippine workers to Libya, Bahrain and Yemen amid political unrest in the three Middle Eastern countries.

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said the Department of Labour and Employment had also temporarily stopped the processing of employment applications to those countries, DPA reported.

"We are concerned that the tensions could continue in the Middle East," he said. "We are making sure that before we send any workers abroad, the places that they are going to will guarantee their safety."

The freeze followed an advisory from the Department of Foreign Affairs for Filipinos to defer travel to Libya, Bahrain and Yemen.

Lacierda said Philippine authorities were also working to ensure the protection of Filipinos already in those countries.

"In case there is an escalation of tensions, we have identified exit points by land and by air and evacuation centres," he said. "We have also appointed coordinators to be in constant touch with the communities."

According to government data, there are 31,000 Filipinos in Bahrain, 26,000 in Libya and 1,400 in Yemen."

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