https://arab.news/y54dj
- Tens of thousands of Canadians are believed to be living in the country, which has already seen Hezbollah trade near-daily fire with Israel in support of its ally Hamas
OTTAWA: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday urged Canadians to leave Lebanon, warning of the risk of escalating regional conflict between Israel and others, including Lebanon-based armed group Hezbollah.
鈥淲e see that the risk of escalation is real,鈥� he said at a press conference. 鈥淲e鈥檙e encouraging and asking all Canadians to please leave Lebanon while there are commercial routes available.鈥�
Tens of thousands of Canadians are believed to be living in the country, which has already seen Hezbollah trade near-daily fire with Israel in support of its ally Hamas, the Palestinian armed group.
An Israeli strike on the Lebanese capital Beirut鈥檚 southern suburbs late last month killed Hezbollah鈥檚 top military commander, Fuad Shukr, just hours before the assassination, blamed on Israel, of Hamas鈥檚 political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.
On Monday, the US government warned that Iran could launch a 鈥渟ignificant attack鈥� on Israel this week, in retaliation against the assassination in Tehran.
Canada issued an advisory in late June against travel to Lebanon, citing a 鈥渧olatile and unpredictable鈥� situation with the possibility of violence between Hezbollah and Israel flaring up without warning.
Its military is setting up emergency resources in Cyprus to evacuate its nationals from the region if commercial flights from Lebanon are halted.