The federal government is sending $5 million in emergency humanitarian aid to Libya, the prime minister announced Wednesday.
The money will go toward medical supplies and emergency shelters, Prime Minister Stephen Harper told the House of Commons.
Harper did not specify how the aid will be delivered. Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, who is facing international condemnation for a violent crackdown on protesters demanding an end to his 42-year rule, has said anyone who accepts international aid is guilty of "high treason" for opening "Libya to colonialism."
Earlier Wednesday, Canadian warship HMCS Charlottetown set sail from Halifax Harbour for the Libyan coast, a deployment that could last up to six months.
The ship carried 240 crew, along with a Sea King helicopter and air force personnel.
Vice-Admiral Dean McFadden, the commander of the Canadian navy, said the HMCS Charlottetown was ready to leave port within two days of getting the order.
"The mission the ship is tasked on is to support . . . an evacuation (of Canadians) . . . but also to be able to co-ordinate with our allies in the Mediterranean to assist in the same way with the evacuations of their citizens," he told Power Play Wednesday.
"There is no more flexible instrument available to government than a warship moving downrange. This is a warship with a full range of capabilities able to respond to a situation that is obviously fluid . . . and could become more tense."
McFadden said the ship has been tasked for a six-month deployment, if necessary.
"The ship may not be home until September," he said.
McFadden said there is a high-readiness naval task group could be called to the Libyan operation. Currently that task force is operating in the Pacific.
While the trip to Libya should take about a week, HMCS Charlottetown's crew was told the journey could take closer to two weeks if weather is bad.
On Wednesday morning Defence Minister Peter MacKay said there are about 100 Canadians still trying to leave the chaotic nation.
Speaking to CTV's Canada AM, MacKay said he has received estimates that there are about 250 Canadians still in Libya.
"Just under 100 of those have indicated their desire to leave and so we'll continue to work tirelessly to get them out," MacKay said.
He added that Canadian officials "have been working around the clock to locate those individuals."
Canada has hit some hurdles in its efforts to evacuate Canadians from the violence-torn nation.
On Tuesday, a Canadian Forces C-130J Hercules aircraft was denied landing rights by Libyan authorities, which stated that there was simply no room for the plane to land.
Last week, at least two charter flights landed in Tripoli but left empty, because officials had trouble locating Canadians at the airport waiting to depart. The planes were then forced to leave after running out their appointed time.
And a C-17 military transport was grounded in Rome last week for days, after it was unable to secure landing rights.
Canada now has two C-17 planes and one C-130 stationed in Malta, making it much easier to deploy rescue operations to Libya, MacKay said.
He said officials are trying to co-ordinate departure times from Malta with the arrival of Canadians at the Tripoli airport.
Canadian consular officials are also working with Canada's allies to co-ordinate evacuation efforts, MacKay said.
