The Philippine ambassador expelled by Kuwait, which protested the rescue of abused Filipina housemaids in the Persian Gulf country as an affront to its sovereignty, has returned home.

Philippine Foreign Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano welcomed Ambassador Renato Villa late Wednesday at Manila's international airport.

Kuwait's Foreign Ministry accused the Philippine Embassy last week of a "flagrant and grave breach of rules and regulations that govern diplomatic action where staff helped Filipina house helpers run away," and ordered Villa to leave within a week. Two Filipinos associated with the embassy were also arrested in Kuwait for allegedly convincing maids to flee their employers' homes.

The Philippines banned the deployment of workers to Kuwait after the body of a Filipina housemaid was discovered in a freezer in a Kuwaiti home in February.