Ottawa won’t commit to rescuing Canadians in Lebanon, but planning is underway

The Canadian government does not want to rescue Canadians in Lebanon if war breaks out, but evacuation plans are being made.

Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly has urged Canadian citizens to leave Lebanon for months due to escalating violence between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. Canada designates Hezbollah as a terrorist group.

An Israeli strike on Tuesday in the Dahiyeh suburb of Beirut killed Hezbollah’s top military commander, an Iranian military adviser and five civilians. Combined with the killing in Tehran hours later of Ismail Haniyeh, the head of the Palestinian armed group Hamas, the attack threatened to send the entire region into a violent tailspin. The Canadian government considers Hamas a terrorist group.

But Ms. Joly’s office declined on Thursday to guarantee that Canada would provide aid to citizens who choose to remain in Lebanon if the conflict escalates to the point where commercial flights are no longer possible.

However, former Chief of Defence Staff General Wayne Eyre said in June that emergency evacuation plans were in place to get Canadians out of Lebanon if necessary. He told CBC News at the time that any efforts would depend on coordination with allies.

Canada and its allies have discussed future extraction plans, likely by sea, since the 2006 evacuation from Lebanon, with Cyprus serving as a hub for such efforts.

Alexandre Tétreault, spokesman for the Department of Defence, said the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) are currently in Cyprus.

“In support of Global Affairs Canada, CAF personnel are currently assisting the Canadian Embassy in Lebanon with contingency planning,” Mr. Tétreault said in a statement.

“In addition, as part of prudent planning and preparation, CAF has established an Operational Liaison and Reconnaissance Team of approximately 30 people in Cyprus and other key locations to work closely with GAC and local authorities as needed. CAF is well connected in the region and works closely with our allies and partners to stay informed of emerging threats that may result in requests to support Canadians and Canadian interests.”

Nearly 22,000 Canadians have registered their presence in Lebanon with the Department of Global Affairs, spokeswoman Charlotte MacLeod said.

That doesn’t include the entire Canadian population, as many don’t register, the government said. A Global Affairs webpage on Canada-Lebanon relations estimates that 40,000 to 75,000 Canadian citizens live there.

Isabella Orozco-Madison, a spokesperson for Ms. Joly, could not say how many Canadians had left Lebanon in recent weeks. She said the department does not keep such data.

She would not say whether Canada would be prepared to withdraw Canadians from Lebanon in the event of a conflict.

However, Canada has intervened in recent years to evacuate its citizens from Israel, Sudan and Afghanistan. The Canadian government’s policy is to transport citizens to a nearby hub, from where they are financially responsible for returning to Canada.

Global Affairs’ Ms. MacLeod urged Canadians to leave Lebanon now. “Canadians in Lebanon should leave now by commercial means if they can do so safely,” she said in a statement. “Canada is not currently offering assisted departures or evacuations for Canadians in Lebanon and there is never a guarantee that the Canadian government will evacuate Canadians in a crisis situation.”

National Defence’s Mr Tétreault warned that the situation in Lebanon was unpredictable and unpredicted due to events in Israel and the West Bank, while violence between Hezbollah and Israel was escalating. “There are violent confrontations along the border with Israel, including daily rocket and missile fire and airstrikes,” he said in a statement.

Canada cannot guarantee that it will rescue citizens from Lebanon, but the Global Affairs website on travel advisories for Lebanon outlines the rules to follow if a rescue operation takes place.

“In the event of an evacuation, Government of Canada-assisted departures are only available to Canadian citizens and permanent residents of Lebanon, as well as their accompanying spouse and dependent children,” the department said. “All travellers will need valid travel documents for their assisted departure.”

With a report from Reuters