Israel news: Joly tells Canadians its ‘time to leave’ Lebanon

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly says she will meet with Lebanon’s prime minister in New York on Saturday amid the escalating conflict between Israel and militant group Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.

On Wednesday, Joly also confirmed two Canadians were among those killed and three others were injured during Israel’s recent airstrikes against Lebanon. CTV News first reported late Tuesday that the two Canadians killed are husband and wife Hussein and Daad Tabaja.

“I would like to give my condolences to the families and loved ones of Canadians that have been killed or injured, and my goal is to be in contact with the families in the coming hours,” Joly said to reporters on Wednesday.

Husein and Daad Tabaja lived in southern Lebanon but were also Canadian citizens who moved to Ottawa in the 1990s to raise their six children.

Tensions between Israel and Hezbollah have steadily escalated since the war broke out nearly one year ago between Israel and Hamas, another Iran-backed militant group. This week, Israel started an airstrike campaign against targets in Lebanon, that Lebanese officials say have killed more than 600 people and displaced thousands. Meanwhile, Hezbollah says it is attacking Israel in support of its Palestinian ally, Hamas, and will not stop until there is a ceasefire in Gaza.

On Wednesday, Israel’s army chief said his country is preparing for a possible ground operation in Lebanon.

For months, the federal government has been urging Canadians in Lebanon to leave while commercial flights are still available. Joly is reiterating that message.

“I’ve been saying to Canadians in Lebanon to come back home,” Joly said. “I’ve been saying also to Canadians wanting to go to Lebanon, don’t go. Why? Because, as foreign minister, my priority is to make sure that Canadians are safe.”

On Wednesday, the NDP called on the federal government to get Canadians in Lebanon out of the country. In response to that call, Joly said Canada is working with allies but commercial flights are “the simplest and safest way” to leave.

“It is important to be able to leave by air now,” Joly said. “It is much more difficult to leave by other means.”

Joly also pointed to the port of Beirut explosion in 2020 which complicates matters.

“Let’s all remember that the difference between 2006 and now is that the port of Beirut exploded a couple of years ago, and that also complicates the way an evacuation could happen in Lebanon,” Joly explained. “Based on that, we’ve worked on (a) different contingency plan, but fundamentally it is important to leave now.”

Before question period on Wednesday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called for an end to the violence.

“This is a horrific situation through which they’re going. We need to see both Israel and Hezbollah deescalate. (We) need to see an end to violence. We need to see civilians protected,” Trudeau said.

Joly also repeated her call for a ceasefire in Gaza and her support for a two-state solution, “where Israelis and Palestinian people will be able to live side by side in peace and security.”

According to Joly, Canada has increased its diplomatic presence in Beirut over the past few weeks. Nearly 45,000 Canadians are in Lebanon.

With files from CTV News’ Heather Wright