MANILA — A Filipina nurse killed in the conflict between Israel and militant group Hamas had refused to flee without her elderly patient, an Israeli official said.

Angelyn Aguirre "was a nurse from the Philippines who was caring for her elderly patient, Nira on Kibbutz Kfar Gaza," said Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem Fleur Hassan-Nahoum.

"Despite having a chance to flee the Hamas terror attacks, Angeline showed unbelievable humanity and loyalty by remaining Nira’s side during the violence, resulting in both of them being brutally murdered by Hamas. Unimaginable honor in the face of evil," she said on X.

Hassan-Nahoum said Filipinos in Israel "are very much loved and appreciated."

"They take care of our elderly, and they take of special needs children… My mother was taken care of by two wonderful carers, two wonderful nurses. I owe them so much. There’s so many people in this country that owe the Filipino community so much. For us, it’s as painful to lose one of you as it is to lose one of us,” she said, breaking into tears.

The official admitted that rescuing Hamas hostages would be “very tricky”, and the battle could take weeks or even months.

Israel is “doing everything” to prevent innocent casualties, she said.

"We’ve gotten used to this 5-day, 7-day wars with Gaza every year… This is not that. This is gonna take weeks or months. Israel’s ready, we’re resilient. We know we’re going to win. That’s not the question. The question is what price are we gonna pay for the victory. That’s really what’s painful,” she added.

Authorities said at least 2 Filipinos were among thousands killed in the war triggered by a surprise Saturday attack by Hamas, which took around 150 Israelis and foreigners hostage.

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In retaliation for the attack, Israel has relentlessly pounded Gaza and imposed a complete siege on the impoverished territory of over 2 million people, cutting off water, electricity and fuel supplies.

There are around 30,000 Filipinos mostly working as caregivers in Israel and 137 in the Hamas-ruled enclave of Gaza, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs.

The DFA on Thursday raised crisis Alert 3 over Gaza and called for the voluntary repatriation of Filipinos.

• DFA places Gaza Strip under Alert Level 3, calls for voluntary repatriation

More than 338,000 people have been forced to flee their homes in Gaza, according to the UN, while the European Union has called for a "humanitarian corridor" to allow civilians to flee the enclave's fifth war in 15 years.

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— With a report from Agence France-Presse