Earlier this week Canada said it will issue five times the amount of visas to Gazans it originally pledged. Immigration Minister Marc Miller said “While movement out of Gaza is not currently possible, the situation may change at any time. With this cap increase, we will be ready to help more people as the situation evolves.”
Canada initially announced in December that it would allot 1,000 temporary resident visas to Canadian relatives living in Gaza. On Monday, Canada announced it will issue 5,000 visas stating they are “horrified” by an Israeli airstrike on Rafah.
Just The News reports Gazans will be able to apply for a temporary resident visa if they live in Gaza, are related to a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident who lives in Canada, and they will be supported by that relative for a year, the Canadian government said Monday. In most cases, people granted visas will be able to stay for up to three years, according to Canadian officials.
A spokesperson for Miller said 448 Gazans had been issued a temporary visa, including 254 under a policy not related to the special visa program, and 41 have arrived in Canada so far.
“We are horrified by strikes that killed Palestinian civilians in Rafah,” Canada’s Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said in a statement, adding that Canada does not support an Israeli military operation in Rafah.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said earlier that the strike in Rafah had not been intended to cause civilian casualties and that something had gone “tragically wrong.” Israel’s military, which is trying to eliminate Hamas in Gaza, said it was investigating.