Fewer Canadians abroad seeking help as hundreds flee Middle East war: GAC
Global News
The department said it is also seeing fewer Canadians take government-assisted travel options as flights gradually resume in certain parts of the region.
The federal government has seen calls for assistance from Canadians abroad drop by more than half since last week, Global Affairs Canada said Tuesday, as hundreds of citizens and permanent residents flee the Middle East amid the war with Iran.
The department said it is also seeing fewer Canadians take the government’s offers of commercial airplane seats and ground transportation as flights gradually resume in certain parts of the region.
The war has led many Gulf nations to close their airspace and suspend flights as Iran fires missiles and drones at its neighbours, killing and wounding hundreds of civilians.
Punishing airstrikes by the U.S. and Israel on Iran — which U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth warned will intensify Tuesday — have killed at least 1,230 people since the war began 11 days ago.
“At this time, we are not aware of any Canadians who have been injured or killed because of the hostilities,” Global Affairs Canada said in its latest update.
More than 110,700 Canadians in the Middle East have signed up to the government’s Canadians abroad registry as of Tuesday, though the actual number of Canadians in the region may be higher.
Global Affairs Canada said that, between March 4 and March 8, more than 4,300 Canadians, permanent residents and family members arrived in Canada from the Middle East.
The government has helped facilitate the departure of 871 Canadians and permanent residents from the region to a safe third country since March 4, the department added.
Sustained pressure on oil prices could mean Canadians will pay significantly more at the grocery store by the end of this month, one expert said.
Also on Sunday, the Prime Minister's Office said Carney gathered the Incident Response Group with ministers and senior officials to discuss the ongoing war in Iran.
An investigative group says newly released video “appears to contradict” U.S. President Donald Trump’s claim that Iran was responsible for an explosion at an Iranian school.
A survey found a majority of Canadians want Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor to lose his claim to the throne, while 51 per cent say the Royal Family is not relevant to them personally.
PST, the Norwegian police security service, called in additional personnel following the incident but has not changed the country's terror threat level.
Israel's military has so far killed about 200 Hezbollah militants, spokesman Nadav Shoshani said in an online briefing. Hezbollah has not published a toll for its fighters.
Canadians are returning home from the Middle East as escalating U.S.-Iran tensions disrupt travel and rattle global energy markets.
Iran's president apologized Saturday for attacks even as its missiles and drones flew toward Gulf Arab states. He also rejected Donald Trump's repeated demands for surrender.
The U.S. says it has stuck a new agreement to provide up to US$20 billion in reinsurance coverage to 'restore confidence in maritime trade' amid the Iran war.
Leavitt also said Washington was looking at potential candidates to lead Iran, a day after Trump said that the U.S. must be involved in choosing the next leader of Iran.
Canada has arranged a chartered flight departing from the UAE, which has the highest number of Canadians registered in the region, Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said.
Carignan said a meeting is set for early Friday morning to discuss such a proposal among allied militaries and that a recommendation would be presented to the government.
As the Iran conflict jeopardizes global oil and gas supplies, Canada's energy and resource sector may be able to offset some of these impacts and see benefits to the economy.