(Ottawa) The federal government says up to 1,000 Palestinian nationals who are family members of Canadian citizens or permanent residents will be able to apply to leave the Gaza Strip with Canada’s help.
The temporary public policy for extended family members for Gaza residents is expected to launch next week, months after Canadians asked for government help to save their loved ones amid Israel’s war and Hamas continues.
Details of the policy released last week indicate that the program will stop accepting applications after receiving 1,000 applications, or after one year.
The program would offer Palestinians visas allowing them to seek refuge in Canada for three years, if their families on Canadian soil are willing to support them financially during this period.
However, Immigration Minister Marc Miller maintains that Canada cannot guarantee safe passage out of Palestinian territory and that Ottawa has no control over the identity of people crossing the tightly controlled border. between the Gaza Strip and Egypt.
A spokesperson for the National Council of Canadian Muslims says the group has been in contact with more than a thousand people hoping to get their families out of Gaza, and believes there should be no cap on the number of requests.