Two Canadians dead in Lebanon as MPs ponder evacuation and Israel mulls invasion

OTTAWA — At least two Canadians have died in the escalating violence in Lebanon, leading some members of Parliament to call for a government evacuation of Canadian citizens from the country.

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly has named the deceased husband and wife in a post on the social media platform X. “Deeply saddened by the killing of Hussein and Daad Tabaja in airstrikes,” she wrote.

Global Affairs Canada said Wednesday it’s in touch with grieving family members, while also assisting another Canadian who has reached out for help with injuries.

“We are devastated by the loss of two Canadians, but the entire Lebanese people are (also) suffering right now — women, children, innocents,” said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

“This is a horrific situation,” he told reporters on Parliament Hill, repeating his earlier calls for both Israel and Hezbollah to de-escalate.

The carnage had the NDP calling for Ottawa to start an evacuation of Canadians, though the government has said that would only happen if it’s impossible to leave by commercial means.

“We have to do everything that is possible,” NDP MP Alexandre Boulerice said, noting that British officials have recently moved military assets to Cyprus for a possible evacuation.

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said the U.K. is catching up with work Canadians had already done to prepare for a possible evacuation by air or sea. She said her trip in May to Cyprus, Greece and Turkey as well as Lebanon involved getting permission to position assets and get help from local officials in the event of an evacuation.

“The plans are definitely ready,” Joly told reporters in French, adding that Canada has also stationed more diplomats in Beirut in recent weeks.

“We are ready should, basically, things escalate even more,” she added in English. “We will never let down the Canadian-Lebanese community.”

Last Friday, Joly said close to 45,000 Canadians are in Lebanon. She has been urging them for months to leave while commercial flights are still available.

Last October, the Canadian military used its aircraft to evacuate citizens in Israel, bringing them to Greece at a time when flights from Israel could be purchased but were frequently being cancelled.

As of Wednesday, the Beirut airport listed multiple flights as departing — 50 per day, Joly said — though Canadians have reported that airlines are cancelling October flights indefinitely.

In 2006, Canada voluntarily evacuated 14,370 people from Lebanon, according to a Senate committee report following the Israel-Hezbollah war. That effort involved 34 ship departures from Beirut and the southern port of Tyre.

At the time an Israeli airstrike had destroyed runways at the Beirut airport, while land routes to neighbouring countries were not considered safe. The evacuation cost Canada $94 million.

Global Affairs Canada said evacuations are “an option of last resort” when there is no commercial means out of the country.

“There is never a guarantee the Canadian government will evacuate Canadians in a crisis situation. Canadians should not rely on the government of Canada for assisted departure or evacuation,” the department said in a statement.

Bloc Québécois leader Yves-François Blanchet put the advice more directly.

“They are telling Canadians in Lebanon to get the hell out of there. That’s what they should do,” he said.

Liberal MP Fayçal El-Khoury was born in Lebanon and said the Port of Beirut must be protected from attacks, as it might end up being the only means of evacuating thousands of Canadians.

The Montreal-area MP urged an end to the escalating cycle of violence in the Middle East.

“It might lead to a regional war and perhaps to an international war, and everyone will pay the price,” he told reporters.

El-Khoury said he is appealing to the government to stand for Canadian values and for human rights.

Monday marked the deadliest day for Lebanon since the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah, with more than 490 killed.

The United Nations says more than 90,000 people have been displaced by five days of Israeli strikes on Lebanon, in addition to the 110,000 people in Lebanon who were already displaced over nearly a year of rocket exchanges between Hezbollah and Israel.

El-Khoury said his cousin who works as an ophthalmologist in Beirut recounted shocking amounts of bodily trauma in a recent explosion, saying that he had to remove more eyes in one day than over the course of his 25-year career.

Joly said Global Affairs Canada’s emergency response team had seen a slight increase in requests for help this past weekend from Lebanon, as people seek help securing flights and travel documents.

“Contingency plans are in place in Lebanon to respond should the situation deteriorate further,” the department said in a statement. “We do not discuss operational details of our missions abroad out of security considerations.”

Israel insists it is trying to convince Hezbollah to stop firing rockets at northern Israel. On Wednesday, the group fired a missile aimed at Tel Aviv, in what was the militant group’s deepest strike yet. Ottawa lists Hezbollah as a terrorist organization.

Israel’s army chief Herzi Halevi said Wednesday that the military is preparing for a possible ground operation in Lebanon. He told troops on Israel’s northern border to “prepare the ground for your possible entry and to continue degrading Hezbollah,” the Associated Press reported.

The Israeli military has said in recent days it had no immediate plans for a ground invasion. Halevi’s comments were the strongest yet suggesting troops could move in.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 25, 2024.

— With files from The Associated Press

Dylan Robertson, The Canadian Press