Minister of Foreign Affairs Anita Anand is urging Canadians in Iran to register with Global Affairs, as the government seeks to help Canadians safely leave the country.Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press
Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand says she has spoken with Iran’s Foreign Minister and pressed him to ensure the safe departure of Canadians from the country.
Ottawa is advising Canadians to leave Iran if they can do so safely, warning that Iranian authorities have detained dual nationals in the past to exert influence on their government.
Global Affairs’ warning came in updated travel advice on Saturday, just before President Donald Trump announced the U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.
The warning also advised Canadians remaining in Iran to “stay close to a bomb shelter or be prepared to shelter in a hardened structure away from windows.”
Canada has not had diplomatic relations with Iran since 2012 and has had to rely on other foreign embassies to help Canadians in the country.
According to Global Affairs, Canada has boosted the number of consular staff in neighbouring countries and in the past week has sent diplomatic staff to the borders in Turkey and Armenia to help Canadians crossing from Iran.
Speaking to reporters in Brussels on Sunday, Ms. Anand urged Canadians in Iran to register with Global Affairs, saying they would be contacted directly by government officials with advice about how to get back to Canada.
She says that in her call with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi she “emphasized the importance of the safety and security of Canadian citizens in the region.”
U.S. military officials say they are not pursuing war with Iran after striking key nuclear sites
Ottawa has been helping Canadians in Israel and Iran find seats on commercial flights to Canada after they cross into neighbouring countries since the conflict between Israel and Iran escalated earlier this month. But Canadians visiting Israel, who included former Conservative MPs Michelle Ferreri and Rick Perkins, have said they had to make their own way to Jordan to board flights after the bombing started.
In the past few days, Global Affairs has been arranging buses to the borders for Canadians. But in a statement on Sunday evening, it said that day’s planned departure from Israel over land had to be postponed until Monday.
It said it is in “regular communication with Canadians who have requested assistance in Iran, Israel and the West Bank.”
After the U.S. strikes on nuclear facilities in Iran, “we are reviewing our mission security posture across the region in close collaboration with our international partners,” it added.
Global Affairs has deployed more than 20 members of its Standing Rapid Deployment Team to Israel, the West Bank, Jordan, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Greece, Cyprus and Armenia to help hundreds of personnel already on the ground.
But it said Canada is unable to provide assistance within Iran because it has no embassy there.
Canadians fleeing war in Iran face obstacles in absence of diplomatic ties
Ottawa facing criticism for not doing more to help Canadians leave Middle East
On Sunday, after the U.S. strikes on Iran, Israel reopened its airspace during the day to allow flights. Israel’s Airports Authority said flights departing Israel would expand on Monday. Israeli airline El Al is reported to have already received 25,000 inquiries about leaving the country.
In Iran, the airspace remains closed.
Mona Ghassemi, president of the Iranian-Canadian Congress, said on Sunday that “enough is not being done” by Ottawa to help Canadians leave Iran.
“From what we have heard, it seems to be not enough as Iranians reaching the emergency number were told it was up to them to get to the border to get a flight from a neighbouring country,” she said, adding that because there is an internet blackout, it is hard to reach people in Iran at the moment.
More than 4,000 Canadian citizens were registered as being in Iran earlier this month.
Maryam Marissen, a Canadian-Iranian from Vancouver with relatives in Iran, said a Canadian cousin is trying to leave the country, but without the internet, it is hard for them to access information, including security updates and travel advice from Ottawa.
She said Canadians with family or friends in Iran have been trying to keep them updated about the situation by phone.
“It’s really troubling,” she said. “Right now, people are just relying on news outlets, and there is a lot of confusion. You really would have to have people on this side, finding the information for you and trying to get it to you.”
In an interview on Friday, Setareh Shariati described how she had travelled to Tehran on June 1 for knee surgery that she had been waiting months to receive in Canada. Taking leave from her job at the University of British Columbia, she didn’t expect to spend her recovery in a war zone.
She is a permanent resident in Canada, but Ms. Shariati said she was denied services from the Canadian embassy in Turkey, which is only supporting citizens.
She said recent surgery prevents her from being able to drive to the Iranian border, and even then, she’s unsure where she’d go or how she’d get to Vancouver.
A 20-litre per car per day gas ration further complicates leaving Tehran. The city is more than 1,000 kilometres away from the nearest bordering countries.
“The roads leading out of the city are basically lost to traffic. Everyone is trying to leave, and gas is really hard to come by,” Ms. Shariati said.
Are you trying to contact your family in Iran?
As tensions mount in the Middle East, reporters are looking to speak with people in Canada who have loved ones currently in Iran. Are you trying to reach them during Internet blackouts or attempting to get them out of the country? Tell us a bit about your situation in the form below or send an e-mail to audience@globeandmail.com with "Iran" in the subject line. A Globe reporter may reach out to you for a story.