Smoke billows from the site of an Israeli air strike that hit the village of Khiam in southern Lebanon, on June 25, 2024. (Credit: Rabih Daher/AFP)
The Canadian government urged its citizens on Tuesday to leave Lebanon as soon as possible "while they still can," due to growing fears of escalating violence at the southern border between Hezbollah and Israel.
"It's time to leave, while commercial options are still available," said Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly in a statement.
Her remarks come after the Israeli army claimed over a week ago to have approved operational plans for a large-scale attack in Lebanon. Hezbollah, for its part, has tied the end of its attacks on Israel to the end of the Israeli war in Gaza.
According to Israeli media, the Canadian minister informed her Israeli counterpart, Yisrael Katz, over the weekend that Canada is preparing for the potential evacuation of 45,000 of its citizens from Lebanon.
On Friday, Kuwait had already urged its citizens to leave Lebanon "as soon as possible" and advised Kuwaitis not to travel to the country "at this time, given the security situation in the region." In response, Kuwait Airways announced on X that "in light of the current situation in the region, and coordination with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it has deployed larger aircraft to Beirut to increase capacity for passengers wishing to return to Kuwait."
