Although a ceasefire took effect Tuesday morning, many Canadians are still finding it difficult to leave Israel and Iran, citing limited assistance and logistical hurdles.
Maeve McMahon, a Canadian PhD student studying at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, described the experience as a “rollercoaster.” While she has received updates and calls from Canadian consular officials, she emphasized that most of the evacuation effort has been left up to individuals.
“It’s very much a self-led evacuation,” McMahon said, noting that Canadian authorities advised citizens to leave Israel through border crossings into Jordan but did not offer support to reach those points. “Half of my peers were evacuated by their governments, and I was being told I could take a cab somewhere.”
The federal government says it is enhancing consular services to support over 6,000 Canadians and permanent residents in Israel and the Occupied West Bank, and approximately 5,500 in Iran. Officials say more consular staff have been deployed to border areas to assist those trying to leave.
So far, the government reports it has helped more than 500 individuals exit the region, including 100 who boarded a charter flight from Jordan on Tuesday.
After waiting over a week, McMahon secured a seat on a Canadian-organized bus scheduled to take citizens from Tel Aviv to the Jordanian border. While they must cross the border independently, Canadian officials will meet them on the Jordanian side and provide transportation to a hotel in Amman. McMahon has also arranged her own flight back to Ottawa.
“I feel like it’s time to come home,” she said. “It’s pretty touch-and-go here. It’s scary. We don’t know what’s going to happen next.”
Efforts to evacuate Canadians have been further complicated by closed airspace in both countries and longstanding travel advisories. The Canadian government also notes that it has no permanent diplomatic presence in Iran, making it difficult to offer consular support there.
