Canada prepares to evacuate 45,000 citizens from Lebanon amid fears of all-out war

Israel’s FM responded by urging Canada to put pressure on Iran, which backs Hezbollah, to de-escalate the conflict. 

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

During a conversation between  Foreign Minister Israel Katz and his Canadian counterpart Mélanie Joly on Israel’s Channel 12, Joly said that Canada was preparing a military evacuation of 45,000 citizens amid fears of an all-out war between Lebanon and Israel.

Joly said Ottowa had already sent military to the region for “the largest evacuation we have ever undertaken.”

It wasn’t clear whether there were also plans to evacuate the 35,000 Canadian citizens in Israel.

Katz responded by urging Canada to put pressure on Iran, which backs Hezbollah, to de-escalate the conflict.

“The window of opportunity is closing,” Katz was quoted as saying. “Israel will not put up with… the situation where residents of the north can’t return to their homes.”

Following the invasion of Hamas on October 7th, Hezbollah began firing rockets into towns in northern Israel, leading to the evacuation of 60,000 Israeli residents who remain displaced after 8 months.

Regarding the escalation of the conflict, US officials said that if Israel and Lebanon are engaged in a full-scale war, the US will provide Israel with the security it needs. However, they emphasized that the Biden Administration will not deploy US troops on the ground.

The IDF announced that “operational plans for an offensive in Lebanon were approved” and it was “accelerating the readiness of the forces on the ground.”

The head of the IDF’s Northern Command Maj. Gen. Ori Gordin and Operations Directorate Chief Maj. Gen. Oded Basiuk approved battle plans, should Israel engage in an all-out war with Lebanon.

The footage from reconnaissance drones, which lasted roughly 10 minutes, showed the port of Haifa, an Israeli naval base, and other crucial sites.

Hezbollah has increased the number of explosive-laden drones sent into Israel, some of which have sparked destructive wildfires.

Hezbollah fired a barrage of rockets and UAVs at the northern town of Metulla Wednesday morning, in retaliation, it said, for IDF airstrikes against its men the previous day in Lebanon.

Israel’s air force then hit several targets in Lebanon in retaliation.