Canada begins West Bank evacuations into Jordan as focus on Rafah Gate intensifies

Ottawa has begun evacuations of Canadians in the West Bank as the Rafah Gate border crossing between Egypt and Gaza remains closed.

More than a week after a deadly Hamas attack on Israel, Ottawa has begun evacuations of Canadians in the West Bank. But uncertainty remains about whether those waiting at the Rafah Gate border crossing between Egypt and Gaza will be able to get through.

Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly said Monday in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, that evacuations of Canadians from West Bank to Jordan had begun, one day earlier than originally anticipated.

Meanwhile, many remain in limbo at the Rafah Gate crossing in the south of Gaza. Israel last week told the population of northern Gaza — roughly one million people — to leave ahead of an expected ground offensive against Hamas after its fighters rampaged through southern Israel on Oct. 7.

Here is what you need to know this Monday.

On Saturday, Joly announced Ottawa had struck a deal with Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Jordan for Canadians in the West Bank to be evacuated by bus. Roughly 335 Canadians are in that area, Global Affairs Canada (GAC) officials said Friday.

GAC officials then said in an update Sunday that 454 Canadians have registered with the government as being in the West Bank and Gaza. There are more than 6,851 Canadians registered as being in in Israel and 14,544 in Lebanon.

GAC officials have been in the region working to evacuate Canadians seeking assistance. GAC said Sunday hundreds of Canadians have left Israel to date on Canadian flights to Athens.

GAC did not reveal an exact figure, but said Canadian evacuation flights have carried more than 1,000 passengers of various nationalities out of the country so far.