The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) says it has temporarily halted deportations to Israel and Lebanon due to ongoing hostilities in the Middle East.
In a statement, the agency said the measure is being implemented because of the “volatile and unpredictable” conflict affecting the region.
Officials say the current situation in Israel and Lebanon is creating widespread risks to civilians, with both countries reporting fatalities and injuries.
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The move, known as an Administrative Deferral of Removals, pauses deportations to countries deemed unsafe due to conditions such as violence or environmental disasters.
Under federal immigration regulations, the measure can be imposed when circumstances pose a generalized risk to the civilian population.
The CBSA said the deferral does not apply to individuals deemed inadmissible to Canada for reasons such as criminality, serious criminality, organized crime, security concerns or human or international rights violations.
The agency says removals will resume once conditions in Israel and Lebanon stabilize and no longer pose a broad risk to civilians.
At that point, individuals with enforceable removal orders who are inadmissible to Canada would again be subject to deportation.
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