The evacuation of hundreds of Canadians stuck in Gaza is still impossible on the eleventh day of the war between Israel and Hamas. The Rafah border crossing, located on the Gaza Strip’s border with Egypt, is still “completely closed,” Canadian government officials said during a technical briefing in Ottawa on Tuesday.
Approximately 370 Canadians and their loved ones remain in Gaza. A plan to allow foreign nationals to leave the territory via a border crossing with Egypt also failed last Saturday.
What complicates the opening of the passage? “The crossing point has been bombed, there is an enormous danger for individuals,” explained an official during the technical briefing. Negotiations between the parties would however be encouraging. “We seem to be getting closer to a solution,” he added.
“Gaza is currently one of the worst places to live on Earth. This is why we are working intensively to guarantee the opening of a humanitarian corridor to Gaza,” said Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly on Tuesday morning.
“It’s not legal”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau condemned the Israeli strike which left at least 200 dead Tuesday in a Gaza hospital.
“The news coming out of Gaza today is devastating. It’s horrible. This is unacceptable. Canada expects international humanitarian law to always be respected,” he reacted before heading to the question period in Ottawa.
“That’s always going to be our position. No, it’s not legal,” he replied when asked about his avoidance of qualifying the legality of the Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip.
The President of the European Council, Charles Michel, also considered on Tuesday that an attack against civilian infrastructure was not in accordance with international law.
In a press release, the Ministry of Health of the Palestinian territory controlled by Hamas reported “200 to 300 martyrs” killed in a bombing that hit the compound of the Ahli Arab hospital, located in the city center.
Limited evacuations
For the moment, evacuations of Canadians to Israel continue. The eleventh and twelfth evacuation flights from Tel Aviv are planned for Tuesday, confirmed Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs Mélanie Joly. There are 1,300 people who have been evacuated from the region thanks to the Canadian Armed Forces since the start of the operation.
In a press scrum Tuesday morning, the minister also reported the evacuation of 21 Canadians by bus from the West Bank. At the same time, the government repatriated Australians and New Zealanders from the region.
While the death toll increases day by day, Mme Joly also warned citizens still in the area of Israel not to delay returning to the country. “If you get a seat, please take it, because we don’t know how long we will be able to continue the operation,” she asked.
Citizens currently in Lebanon are also encouraged to return to Canada while commercial flights are still available.
Minister Mélanie Joly confirmed Tuesday that six Canadians were killed and two others are still missing in Israel since the attacks began. Tiferet Lapidot, a 22-year-old Israeli woman with family in Canada, is part of the death toll. She had been sought ever since by her family, who hoped to find her alive.
More than 1,400 people were killed in Israel, most of them civilians killed on the day of the attack, the deadliest since the creation of the Jewish state.