Thousands of Canadians may soon need to leave Lebanon. 2006 war suggests that's no easy task
Possible evacuation looms as Canada warns against all travel to Lebanon
The federal government is warning Canadians to avoid all travel to Lebanon and telling those already in the country to leave now, as the crisis in Israel and Gaza worsens and concerns grow that the conflict could spill over the border.
For now, tensions between the Israeli military and Hezbollah — a political party and armed movement in Lebanon which supports the Palestinian militant factions Hamas and Islamic Jihad, all of which are backed by the Iranian regime — have been limited to exchanges of artillery fire and rocket attacks in border regions.
Diplomatic efforts are underway to prevent any further escalation, though the Israeli Defence Forces have already evacuated communities near the border with Lebanon, and Hezbollah has warned it's "fully ready" to intervene in the Israel-Hamas war.
A cross-border conflagration could quickly leave many of the more than 15,000 Canadians registered as being in Lebanon — likely a fraction of the actual number — with limited options for leaving the country. And as Canada learned during the 2006 conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, getting its citizens out of Lebanon under such circumstances can be a complicated, expensive endeavour.
Avoid all travel: GAC
Global Affairs Canada (GAC) upgraded its travel advisory for Lebanon late Wednesday night to warn against all travel to any part of the country due to the "deteriorating security situation, civil unrest, the increased risk of terrorist attack and the ongoing armed conflict with Israel."
The department cautioned the security situation could worsen with little notice.
Since the Israel-Hamas conflict broke out, Canadians trying to leave the region have had some government help. According to GAC, approximately 1,400 Canadian citizens and permanent residents, along with some other foreign nationals, have departed on 14 government-operated airlifts from Israel, with another due to depart Thursday.
Negotiations to secure safe passage for some of the more than 350 Canadians requesting assistance to leave Gaza via the land crossing with Egypt are still underway.
Are you a Canadian citizen or permanent resident in Lebanon who is worried about leaving the country amid the crisis in the region? Tell us about it in an email to ask@cbc.ca
In addition to the new travel warning on Lebanon, Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly is warning Canadians who are currently there that they should leave as soon as they can.
"If you are in Lebanon, it is now time to leave while commercial flights are still available," Joly told reporters in Ottawa on Tuesday.
The Canadian Armed Forces have begun setting up a task force in Cyprus to assist with an evacuation should GAC request one.
Planes grounded, flights cancelled
Lebanon's national air carrier, Middle East Airlines, has already parked five of its passenger jets, out of a fleet of 24, at the international airport in Istanbul as a precautionary measure. The airline says its day-to-day operations have not been affected, but it has an "emergency plan" to move more aircraft if the situation changes.
Other international airlines have temporarily suspended flights to and from Beirut, including Germany's Lufthansa, SWISS Airlines and Saudia.
The concern may lie in the fact that Beirut's Rafic Hariri International Airport was Israel's first major target when it launched a country-wide war against Hezbollah in July 2006 — a conflict that persisted for 34 days.
The Beirut airport is Lebanon's only commercial international airport; Israel considered it a "central hub for the transfer of weapons and supplies to Hezbollah." The attack by the Israeli military on July 13, 2006, damaged its runways and set fuel tanks on fire.
Israeli warships also imposed a blockade on Lebanese seaports to prohibit fuel delivery, which prevented passenger ships from docking, as well.
Canada's 'largest' evacuation effort
The Canadian government estimated in 2006 that there were as many as 50,000 Canadians in Lebanon needing to flee the country.
Six days after the Israeli assault on the airport, the Canadian military began evacuation efforts, with the support of the Israeli and Lebanese governments.
On July 19, ships chartered by the Canadian government began transporting Canadians and other foreign nationals from two ports — primarily Beirut but also Tyre, in southern Lebanon — to Cyprus and Turkey, from where they were later flown back to Canada.
By the time "Operation Lion," as it was known, came to an end on Aug. 15, Canada had transported nearly 15,000 evacuees out of Lebanon on 34 maritime voyages, at a total cost of $94 million.
The foreign affairs minister at the time, Peter MacKay, later told the House of Commons that it was "by far the largest" evacuation effort attempted in Canadian history.
But the operation wasn't necessarily smooth.
CBC News reported from Beirut, on the first day of evacuations, that there were chaotic scenes at the port, with evacuees complaining that the Canadian embassy hadn't given them enough information.
Then as the first ship was preparing to depart, the Israeli Navy suddenly ordered it to leave in the next 10 minutes before it would close a security window for the vessel's passage.
MacKay had to call his Israeli counterpart to insist that Israel give the Canadian Navy more time to board passengers.
The first flight to carry evacuees from Cyprus was actually the plane that had transported then-prime minister Stephen Harper and his wife, Laureen, to a summit in Europe. In order to make room for evacuees, members of the media travelling with the prime minister were left behind in Paris.
Canada follows U.S.
Hours before the travel advisory to Lebanon was updated Wednesday, the opposition Conservatives argued GAC's previous advice to avoid non-essential travel to the country didn't go far enough.
MP Michael Chong accused the Liberal government of being "a dollar short and a day late when it comes to protecting the safety and security of Canadians overseas."
Chong compared Canada's warning to the U.S. State Department travel advisory, which was updated earlier this week to warn U.S. citizens not to travel to Lebanon at all.
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With files from Nahlah Ayed and Thomson Reuters