Canada pledges more visas for Gazans, says it’s ‘horrified’ by Israeli attack in Rafah By Reuters
By Ismail Shakil
OTTAWA (Reuters) – Canada said on Monday it would issue visas to 5,000 residents of the Gaza Strip, more than it initially pledged, and said it was “horrified” by the Israeli air strike on Rafah that caused a fire that killed 45 people. .
The visas for relatives of Canadians living in the enclave represent a five-fold increase from the 1,000 temporary resident visas allocated under a special program Canada announced in December.
Immigration Minister Mark Miller said: “While exiting Gaza is not currently possible, the situation could change at any time. With this increase in the cap, we will be ready to help more people as the situation evolves.”
A spokesman for Miller said 448 Gazans have been granted temporary visas, including 254 under a policy not related to the Special Visa Program, and 41 have arrived in Canada so far.
An Israeli air strike late Sunday night caused a fire in a camp in the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, angering world leaders including Canada.
“We are horrified by the strikes that led to the deaths of Palestinian civilians in Rafah,” Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Jolie said in a statement, adding that Canada does not support an Israeli military operation in Rafah.
“This level of human suffering must end. We demand an immediate ceasefire,” Jolie said, echoing world leaders who urged implementation of the International Court's order to stop the Israeli attack.
Canada has repeatedly supported calls for a ceasefire in Gaza, including at the United Nations.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said earlier that the raid in Rafah was not intended to cause civilian casualties and that something had gone “tragic wrong.” The Israeli army, which is trying to eliminate Hamas in Gaza, said it was investigating.
Nearly 36,000 Palestinians were killed in the Israeli offensive on Gaza, according to the local health ministry, and an estimated 1.7 million people were displaced, more than 75% of Gaza's population, according to the United Nations Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA.
Israel launched its military campaign after Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israeli communities on October 7, killing about 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostage, according to Israeli statistics.
