‘Leave Lebanon while you still can’ – Canada warns citizens

“The security situation in Lebanon is becoming increasingly volatile,” says Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly.

By World Israel News Staff

The Canadian government officially called for its citizens to self-evacuate from Lebanon “while they still can,” in a dramatic public statement published on Tuesday.

“My message to Canadians has been clear since the beginning of the crisis in the Middle East: it is not the time to travel to Lebanon. And for Canadians currently in Lebanon, it is time to leave, while commercial flights remain available,” read a statement credited to Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly.

“If the armed conflict intensifies it could impact your ability to leave the country and our ability to provide you with consular services. Canada is not currently offering assisted departures or evacuations for Canadians in Lebanon, and these are not guaranteed.”

The statement added that “the security situation in Lebanon is becoming increasingly volatile and unpredictable due to sustained and escalating violence between Hezbollah and Israel and could deteriorate further without warning.”

Joly’s warning comes after a recent phone call with her Israeli counterpart, Foreign Minister Israel Katz, in which she said that Canada was preparing a military evacuation of 45,000 citizens due to concerns over a full-scale war between Israel and Hezbollah.

She stressed that Ottawa had already sent military to the region for “the largest evacuation we have ever undertaken.”

In response, Katz said that “the window of opportunity” to avert war via a diplomatic agreement “is closing.”

Katz also reportedly said that “Israel will not put up with… the situation where residents of the north can’t return to their homes.”

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told Defense Minister Yoav Gallant during a meeting at the Pentagon on Tuesday that Washington is working diligently to secure a diplomatic agreement that would end hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah.

“Hezbollah’s provocations threaten to drag the Israeli and Lebanese people into a war that they do not want. Such a war would be a catastrophe for Lebanon and it would be devastating for innocent Israeli and Lebanese civilians,” Austin said.

“Diplomacy is by far the best way to prevent more escalation. So we’re urgently seeking a diplomatic agreement that restores lasting calm to Israel’s northern border and enables civilians to return safely to their homes on both sides of the Israel-Lebanon border.”

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