Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pleaded for peace in the Middle East Saturday, as he decried a civilian death toll he blamed on Hamas, Hezbollah and Israel.
But Trudeau stopped short of outright condemning Israel for beginning a ground war days after the Israeli military crossed the border into southern Lebanon.
“We need to see peace in the region,” Trudeau said from Paris where he is attending the final day of the Francophonie summit.
The gathering of leaders of French-speaking countries takes place every two years to promote and protect French language and culture around the world.
But the war in the Middle East has been a dominant factor in this year’s meeting, particularly as Lebanon is one of the organization’s 88 member countries.
Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly, in Paris with Trudeau, was scheduled to meet with a Lebanese government minister later Saturday.
Violence in the region escalated in recent weeks, nearly a year after the Hamas attack on Israel that set off the latest war with Hamas in Gaza and between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
About 1,200 Israelis were killed and 250 others taken hostage in the Oct. 7, 2023 attack. Gaza health authorities say nearly 42,000 people have been killed in Gaza in the year since.
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Hezbollah and Israel have traded fire across the Lebanon border almost daily in the last year.
In late September Israel stepped up its airstrikes aimed at Hezbollah targets in suburban Beirut, which local health officials say have killed nearly 2,000 people. Israel also began a ground incursion last week.
Iran, which helps arm and finance both Hamas and Hezbollah, launched at least 180 ballistic missiles at Israel on Tuesday, an attack Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Friday was a “shining” job by Iran’s armed forces. He said they would do it again if needed.
Trudeau condemned the Iranian missile attacks last week but on Saturday, when asked he if he condemned Israel for moving troops by land into Lebanon, he didn’t use the word.
“The terrorist organizations, Hezbollah and Hamas have caused countless deaths, but so has the response of Israel,” he said in response.
“We need to make sure that we see de-escalation and we need to continue to hold Iran to account for its funding and organizing behind the scenes of Hamas, of Hezbollah, of the Houthis.”
Israel has a legitimate right to respond to Iran’s attacks, Trudeau said, “but at the same time, we have to be mindful about not letting the situation get further inflamed, not allowing or seeing further escalation of violence or spreading of conflict through the region.”
Trudeau said peace includes a two-state solution for both Israel and a Palestinian state.
Joly said Saturday about 1,000 Canadians have now been able to flee the violence on flights chartered by Canada from Beirut to Istanbul.
More flights have been added on Monday and Tuesday, she said.
Canada believes nearly 45,000 citizens and close family members were in Lebanon when the violence began escalating last month. Joly said 6,000 Canadians have registered to get more information about the flights being offered.
However many seats are not being taken when those registered are being called back and offered a ticket. Joly said she knows things are difficult but pleaded for people to take a seat if offered it.
Trudeau was asked about the safety of asking people to do so, given an airstrike that got close to the Beirut airport Friday and the two Canadians who were killed trying to flee violence in southern Lebanon on Sept. 23.
“The risks in the region have been known for a long time, which is why for the past many months we have been exhorting Canadians to get out of Lebanon,” Trudeau said.
“The tragedy of the two Canadians killed is something that weighs heavily on us but we know we need to continue to offer opportunities for people to leave to safety and we will continue to do that work.”
He also said that critical infrastructure including the port and the airport in Beirut, must not be targeted.
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