Three Canadians have died in the violence in Israel – two confirmed and one suspected – and three others are still missing, Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly confirmed.
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It is not excluded that other Canadians were among those taken hostage by Hamas soldiers, but the minister was careful not to disclose this information so as not to “increase the value of these hostages and not necessarily put their lives in danger.” “.
“What I can tell you is that we have been in contact with the main hostage negotiators in Israel and will be sending a group of experts to support him and his team,” she said at a news conference Wednesday morning.
The minister also said she had spoken to the family of Alexandre Look, the young Canadian killed in the attack on an electronic music festival.
“I have to tell you, this is one of the hardest calls I’ve ever had to make in my life,” she said.
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Soon returns
The minister also noted that repatriation efforts will begin by the end of the week with the help of defense aircraft and an Air Canada flight.
About 500 people in the region have already registered with Global Affairs Canada to return to the country.
“If there are still commercial flights, we do not normally carry out armed evacuations,” emphasized Ms. Joly.
The minister counted 4,249 Canadians currently registered in Israel, 476 in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and Global Affairs responded to about 2,000 inquiries.