Close X
Friday, November 29, 2024
ADVT 
National

Global Affairs Canada 'aware of reports' of missing Canadian in Gaza Strip

Darpan News Desk IANS, 08 Feb, 2024 12:08 PM
  • Global Affairs Canada 'aware of reports' of missing Canadian in Gaza Strip

Ottawa says it is aware of reports that another Canadian citizen has gone missing in the Gaza Strip.

Global Affairs Canada says it is providing consular assistance to the family but can't share more because of privacy considerations. 

The Associated Press reports that Israeli forces detained two young adult American brothers and their Canadian father in Gaza in an overnight raid.

Relatives of the men say they were taken from their home.

A U.S. Embassy official in Jerusalem reached by telephone from Washington said American officials were aware of the situation and were following up with Israeli authorities.

The embassy official gave no details and ended the call without giving her name, while the Israeli foreign ministry and military had no immediate comment.

Borak Alagha, 18, and Hashem Alagha, 20, two brothers born in the Chicago area, are among fewer than 50 U.S. citizens known to still be trying to leave sealed-off Gaza, as the Israel-Hamas war entered its fifth month.

Cousin Yasmeen Elagha, a law student at Northwestern University, said Israeli forces entered the family home in the community of al-Muwasi, near the southern city of Khan Younis, around 5 a.m. Gaza time Thursday.

The soldiers tied up and blindfolded the women and children in the family, and placed them outside the home, the cousin said.

The two American brothers, their Canadian citizen father, a mentally disabled uncle and two other adult male relatives were taken away by the Israelis, and remain missing, Elagha said.

Men of a neighboring household were also taken away. So were other adult male relatives of another Alagha household, for a total of about 20 detained, the U.S. cousin said.

A family social media account from Gaza also described the detentions.

State Department spokespeople in Washington had no immediate comment on the reported detention of the American brothers.

The brothers would be among three American citizens taken into custody by Israeli forces this week, during the same time Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited the region to try to mediate a ceasefire and hostage release deal with ally Israel and regional Arab leaders.

MORE National ARTICLES

Home sales slow in the Fraser Valley

Home sales slow in the Fraser Valley
At $1,489,100, the Benchmark price for an FVREB single-family detached home decreased 0.94 per cent compared to October 2023 and increased 6.22 per cent compared to November 2022.

Home sales slow in the Fraser Valley

'Atmospheric river' set to hit Metro Vancouver, southern coast of British Columbia

'Atmospheric river' set to hit Metro Vancouver, southern coast of British Columbia
Environment Canada is also warning drivers on the Sea to Sky Highway from Squamish to Whistler to exercise caution due to heavy rains raising the risk of flooding and landslides along the route. The rainfall warning says an atmospheric river is set to make landfall on the province's southern coast today, bringing as much as 150 millimetres of rain to Western Vancouver Island.  

'Atmospheric river' set to hit Metro Vancouver, southern coast of British Columbia

Large pro-Israel rally planned for Parliament Hill on Monday

Large pro-Israel rally planned for Parliament Hill on Monday
Prominent Jewish groups are set to host a rally on Parliament Hill Monday afternoon in solidarity with Israel. The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs says the event is meant to be a show of collective strength in the face of what it calls staggering antisemitism. 

Large pro-Israel rally planned for Parliament Hill on Monday

Canadian confirmed dead in Lebanon

Canadian confirmed dead in Lebanon
A Canadian citizen has been confirmed dead in Lebanon, the eighth since the start of the Israel-Hamas war. In an update Sunday evening, Global Affairs Canada provided no further details but did confirm that 130 more Canadians left Gaza this weekend after the Rafah border crossing reopened to foreign nationals.

Canadian confirmed dead in Lebanon

Avian flu at Chilliwack poultry farm

Avian flu at Chilliwack poultry farm
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency says it has detected the presence of Avian influenza at a Chilliwack commercial poultry operation. It is now the 50th B-C location where the contagious viral infection has been detected at commercial or backyard bird operations since October.

Avian flu at Chilliwack poultry farm

Man with ties to Vancouver, Edmonton and Halifax killed in Calgary drive-by shooting

Man with ties to Vancouver, Edmonton and Halifax killed in Calgary drive-by shooting
Police say a man with ties to Vancouver, Edmonton and Halifax has been killed in a drive-by shooting in Calgary. Officers responded to reports of gunshots in the Beltline neighbourhood, south of downtown, just after 9 p.m. Thursday. Police say they found the 40-year-old man with apparent gunshot wounds.

Man with ties to Vancouver, Edmonton and Halifax killed in Calgary drive-by shooting