Global Affairs says 10 more people with ties to Canada have managed to leave Gaza

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This article was published 13/11/2023 (749 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

OTTAWA – Ten more people with ties to Canada crossed from the Gaza Strip into Egypt on Monday, Global Affairs Canada said.

No Canadians appeared on a published list of people permitted Monday to leave the Palestinian territory; however, some of the Canadian citizens, permanent residents and eligible family members on the list from Friday did not make it into Egypt when the border reopened Sunday.

On Sunday, 234 people with Canadian ties travelled from Gaza into Egypt as the crossing reopened after a two-day closure.

There had been 266 names of people with ties to Canada on Friday’s list from the General Authority for Crossings and Borders, which in co-ordination with the Egyptian and Israeli governments determines who is cleared to make the crossing at Rafah.

Global Affairs Canada said it remains in contact with more than 250 Canadians, permanent residents and their eligible family members in the war-torn territory. Last week that figure stood at more than 600.

The Israel-Hamas war, now in its sixth week, began on Oct. 7 when Hamas militants stormed into Israel, killing an estimated 1,200 people and taking roughly 240 others back into Gaza as hostages. Israel has retaliated with daily air and land strikes, and the Hamas-run health authority says casualties in the territory have topped 11,000.

The Egyptian government is allowing those who cross the Rafah border to stay in the country for up to 72 hours. The Canadian Embassy in Egypt is assisting those who cross with transportation to Cairo, as well as with food and accommodation until they arrange their travel plans.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 13, 2023.