Canada changes course, starts busing citizens out of Israel

A man walks through the damaged headquarters of Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting, Iranian state television, in Tehran, Iran on Thursday, June 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

OTTAWA — Ottawa has started offering buses to Canadians looking to leave Israel and the West Bank, along with those who manage to flee Iran -- but few have taken up the offer days after Canada told citizens in the region to find their own way to neighbouring countries.

Canada has updated its travel advisory for Qatar, which warns to exercise a “high degree of caution,” after Iran attacked a U.S. base in the country.

In a Monday afternoon media briefing, Global Affairs Canada said 6,000 Canadians have registered in Israel using the department’s database, while slightly more than 400 have registered in the West Bank and around 5,500 have registered in Iran.

The actual number of Canadians in any given region is usually much higher than the numbers registered with Ottawa, said Dennis Horak, a former Canadian ambassador who served in the Middle East.

Canada started providing spots on buses for Canadians fleeing Israel days after peer countries like France and Australia offered the same service to their own citizens -- prompting criticism from former Conservative MPs.

Global Affairs Canada said it has more spots open on flights out of the region than it has takers so far.

Just 100 passengers have agreed to pay a cost-recovery fee of $400 to board a 265-seat flight Ottawa has chartered leaving Aqaba, Jordan for Athens on Tuesday. From Athens, Canadians can book their own flights home with support from embassy staff.

Just 55 Canadians opted to take a bus Monday from Tel Aviv to Jordan, as did seven from the West Bank. Officials said the first bus was meant to leave Sunday but was delayed due to the security situation.

Canada closed its embassy in Iran in 2012 and has stationed officials in neighbouring countries like Turkey, where 10 Canadians took a provided bus yesterday to travel out of the region. Ottawa has four buses stationed at a border crossing between Iran and Turkey.

Ottawa has Canadian consular officials stationed in other countries neighbouring Israel and Iran to help Canadians fleeing the region find their way home.

Officials say they have facilitated requests from more than 100 Canadians looking to enter Azerbaijan from Iran.

The officials briefing media Monday said the number of Canadians registered in the region has fluctuated, reflecting the fact that “hundreds” have found their own ways of getting out.

Canadians in Iran have reported difficulties getting information on departures, given restrictions on internet access since Israel launched a missile attack on Iran on June 13. They have said congested streets and fuel rationing have made it extremely difficult to get to a nearby country.

Canada has urged its citizens to “avoid all travel” to Iran since March 2020. It extended that warning to Israel on June 13, where Ottawa previously has been asking Canadians to “avoid non-essential travel.”

The airspace has been largely closed over both countries and other parts of the Middle East as Israel and Iran exchange missiles.

Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand spoke Sunday with her Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi and told reporters she “emphasized the importance of the safety and security of Canadian citizens in the region.”

This appears to be the first official call between Ottawa and Tehran in years, said Horak, who led Canada’s embassy until the Harper government opted to sever relations in 2012.

“This would have absolutely been the first time in quite some time,” Horak said. He said Anand might have asked the Iranians for permission to get Canadians out on evacuation flights once the airspace reopens.

He said putting buses at Iran’s borders is probably the only step Canada can take right now, given it has no diplomats in the country to co-ordinate logistics.

“We do have an obligation to try and assist, but obviously there are practical limits to that,” he said. “Not being there doubles the challenges.”

Horak said that consular duties like getting Canadians out of a war zone is “the absolute priority” for both diplomats posted abroad and staff at Global Affairs Canada headquarters.

Iran fired missiles Monday at the al-Udeid airbase in Qatar, which includes the largest American base in the Middle East. Iranian officials said they were targeting the U.S. in retaliation for its Saturday bombing of Iranian nuclear sites. The Qatari government said it thwarted the attack and had the base evacuated beforehand.

The Canadian Armed Forces has been asked whether it had anyone at that base, which houses tens of thousands of troops from allied countries.

Global Affairs Canada has advised Canadians to shelter in place when asked to do so by local officials but has stopped short of suggesting that citizens not visit Qatar.

Horak said that there is not much Canada can do to help with the geopolitical situation, as it has limited influence in the region and a relatively small cadre of diplomats.

“The thing about the Middle East is you can deprioritize it all you want, but eventually it’s going to force its way onto your agenda,” he said.

By Dylan Robertson.