The Canadian government will not facilitate any rescues in Gaza— unlike a 2006 evacuation from Lebanon that cost more than $90 million — according to Blacklock’s Reporter. “Movement out of Gaza remains extremely challenging and may not be possible due to entry and exit requirements set by countries and other actors in the region,” said Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) in a statement. “Applicants who are able to exit Gaza will also need to meet all admissibility requirements.”The Canadian government said on Tuesday it will be allowing 1,000 Palestinians, with Canadian relatives willing to support them, to obtain visas for three years. READ MORE: Feds to allow 1,000 Palestinians to obtain Canadian visas“Canada remains deeply concerned about the ongoing war and the scale of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, and the government made a public policy to facilitate temporary resident visas for certain extended family affected by the crisis in Gaza,” said Immigration Minister Marc Miller. “This public policy will provide a family-based temporary refuge for Palestinian nationals directly affected by the crisis in the Gaza Strip and who have Canadian citizen or permanent resident family members in Canada willing to support them during their temporary stay.” Special visas will be capped at 1,000. Miller said at a press scrum he was “thinking in the hundreds.”“We will require documentation in order to get to Canada,” said Miller. “There will be a process just to get people out of Gaza which will be, knowing from experience, very intensive from a security perspective as well as the biometrics that will need to be performed in Cairo.”At the moment, he said it is tough to leave Gaza and could be unfeasible. If people are let through, he acknowledged there is an extensive vetting system on the ground. “The Israelis have their say,” he said. “They will screen people and decide whether they leave or don’t leave.”A reporter asked if the Canadian government was not offering to pay for their airfare. When it comes to airfare, he said it is asking people to sponsor it. “There could be circumstances where the Government of Canada could loan the money,” he said. The National Council of Canadian Muslims confirmed Canadians applying for visas on behalf of extended family in Gaza have to submit a notarized pledge to offer financial and social support. “Once in Canada, eligible people can apply for a fee-exempt study permit or open work permit,” said IRCC. Any Gazans who find their way to Canada would be eligible for three months of free healthcare and language training. This program follows the 2006 evacuation of Canadian citizens from Lebanon that cost taxpayers $94 million. The Canadian government paid to ferry 14,000 people from Lebanon to Cyprus and Turkey for connecting flights to Canada. “Approximately 35% of people who had registered with the Canadian Embassy at the peak of the crisis in fact needed or accepted the government’s assistance in leaving Lebanon,” said the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee.
The Canadian government will not facilitate any rescues in Gaza— unlike a 2006 evacuation from Lebanon that cost more than $90 million — according to Blacklock’s Reporter. “Movement out of Gaza remains extremely challenging and may not be possible due to entry and exit requirements set by countries and other actors in the region,” said Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) in a statement. “Applicants who are able to exit Gaza will also need to meet all admissibility requirements.”The Canadian government said on Tuesday it will be allowing 1,000 Palestinians, with Canadian relatives willing to support them, to obtain visas for three years. READ MORE: Feds to allow 1,000 Palestinians to obtain Canadian visas“Canada remains deeply concerned about the ongoing war and the scale of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, and the government made a public policy to facilitate temporary resident visas for certain extended family affected by the crisis in Gaza,” said Immigration Minister Marc Miller. “This public policy will provide a family-based temporary refuge for Palestinian nationals directly affected by the crisis in the Gaza Strip and who have Canadian citizen or permanent resident family members in Canada willing to support them during their temporary stay.” Special visas will be capped at 1,000. Miller said at a press scrum he was “thinking in the hundreds.”“We will require documentation in order to get to Canada,” said Miller. “There will be a process just to get people out of Gaza which will be, knowing from experience, very intensive from a security perspective as well as the biometrics that will need to be performed in Cairo.”At the moment, he said it is tough to leave Gaza and could be unfeasible. If people are let through, he acknowledged there is an extensive vetting system on the ground. “The Israelis have their say,” he said. “They will screen people and decide whether they leave or don’t leave.”A reporter asked if the Canadian government was not offering to pay for their airfare. When it comes to airfare, he said it is asking people to sponsor it. “There could be circumstances where the Government of Canada could loan the money,” he said. The National Council of Canadian Muslims confirmed Canadians applying for visas on behalf of extended family in Gaza have to submit a notarized pledge to offer financial and social support. “Once in Canada, eligible people can apply for a fee-exempt study permit or open work permit,” said IRCC. Any Gazans who find their way to Canada would be eligible for three months of free healthcare and language training. This program follows the 2006 evacuation of Canadian citizens from Lebanon that cost taxpayers $94 million. The Canadian government paid to ferry 14,000 people from Lebanon to Cyprus and Turkey for connecting flights to Canada. “Approximately 35% of people who had registered with the Canadian Embassy at the peak of the crisis in fact needed or accepted the government’s assistance in leaving Lebanon,” said the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee.
