Amid the recent rise in violence in Iraq, the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) imposed a total ban on the deployment of overseas Filipino workers there.

Philippine officials in violence-torn Iraq have started mapping out the whereabouts of overseas Filipino workers based there to facilitate their repatriation if they wish to return home.

Amid the recent bombings in Iraq, the Philippine government on Wednesday raised the alert level there to “3,” encouraging voluntary repatriation of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in affected areas.

Citing the security reasons, the Philippine government informed Iraq of its plan to raise the alert level in that country to “3″ and encourage the voluntary repatriation of Filipinos there.

Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario will visit Iraq this Sunday to assess the security and safety of Filipinos amid the escalating violence there.

Iraqi government officials called for the reopening of the Philippine embassy in Baghdad, more than six years after Filipino diplomats there moved to Jordan over “security concerns.”

A five-member delegation from the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has been sent to Iraq to study the possible lifting of the ban on the deployment of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

Philippine labor officials on Tuesday partially lifted the ban on deployment of overseas Filipino workers to war-torn countries Iraq and Afghanistan.

THE Philippine embassy in Baghdad said Filipino workers are not affected by the plan of the Iraqi government to deport illegal foreign workers.

Iraq’s ambassador has called on the Philippines to lift its travel ban to Iraq, saying Filipino workers can gain by taking part in his country’s reconstruction.