By Canadian Press

Foreign affairs minister says Canadians will soon be cleared to leave Gaza

Nov 3, 2023 | 6:35 AM

OTTAWA — Canadians remained off the list of approved foreign citizens to exit the Gaza Strip as Canada’s minister of foreign affairs reconfirmed that Canadians and their families will be able to leave in the coming days.

Melanie Joly issued a late Thursday update on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, saying she has spoken with her counterpart in Israel, Eli Cohen, about the matter.

She says she also received confirmation of Egypt’s co-operation.

While the flow of foreign nationals leaving Gaza through the Rafah crossing since Wednesday has been slow, officials with Global Affairs Canada say they are working around the clock to evacuate Canadians from the war zone. They are asking Canadians to get their documents and “be ready to depart once we are informed that they can cross the border.” However, as of Friday, at 5 a.m. Eastern, Canada has not been added to the official approval list of “foreign passports” for travel through the Rafah crossing.

Joly’s message also noted that G-A-C will communicate the latest information directly with Canadians.

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More than 1,400 people in Israel have been killed, most of them civilians slain in the initial Oct. 7 attack by Hamas. In addition, around 240 hostages were taken from Israel into Gaza by the militant group. Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry claims Israel’s military response has killed more than 9,000 Palestinians.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 3, 2023.

The Canadian Press