​Typhoon Haiyan, the strongest typhoon in recorded history, is believed to have killed as many as 10,000 people since it hit Friday.
 
An Israeli delegation of experts in the fields of search, rescue and medicine left on Sunday night (10 November) for the Philippines.
The rescuers are part of the IDF’s Home Front Command.
 
A six-member advance team – four people from the IDF Home Front Command and two from the Foreign Ministry – will evaluate what is needed on the ground before Israel sends a larger mission. 
 
The team landed in Manila at 20:00 local time and will depart for Tacloban, where they will perform a thorough situation assessment, including an infrastructure evaluation, that will determine the best rapid response Israel can provide to the government and people of the Philippines.
 
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent a letter to Philippine President Benigno Aquino:
 
"On behalf of the government and people of Israel, I extend heartfelt condolences to the families of those who lost their lives as a result of the horrific typhoon, and I send best wishes for a speedy recovery to those who were injured.
 
I hope that Israel's assistance will help alleviate the suffering of those affected by this terrible disaster.
 
Our thoughts and prayers are with you and the Filipino people at this difficult time."
 
Israel has frequently offered aid in the wake of disasters overseas, such as the earthquake in Haiti in January 2010 and an earthquake in Turkey in 2011.
 
The IsraAID humanitarian organization also sent a team of seven medical professionals to Tacloban City in the storm-ravaged Philippines to provide critical health interventions in the affected region.
 
IsraAID, too, will continue to assess needs in the field and offer aid accordingly, including trauma professionals and child protection specialists.

" Israeli experts to Philippines to assess possible assistance"
Website of the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs: http://mfa.gov.il/MFA/PressRoom/2013/Pages/Israeli-experts-to-Philippines-to-assess-possible-assistance-10-Nov-2013.aspx