Three Canadians taken by Israel in Gaza, says relative
The family of three Canadian men says they were taken from their home in the Gaza Strip during an overnight raid by Israeli forces, as Ottawa confirms it is aware of reports that a citizen has gone missing.
Yasmeen Elagha told The Canadian Press from Chicago that her uncle and two American-born cousins are missing.
Ahmed Alagha was born in Canada, Elagha said, and lived in Toronto with his American-born sons Borak, 18, and Hashem, 20, before they moved to Gaza in the mid-2000s.
She said all three men have Canadian citizenship, and they were kidnapped by Israeli forces early Thursday.
"They have so many people who are asking about them in Canada. They left such a big impression on their community there when they lived in Toronto," Elagha said.
She added that three younger children, who are also Canadian citizens, and their mother Samar, who has Canadian permanent residency, were not taken.
In an interview on Thursday, she criticized Canada's response to the incident, decrying a lack of urgency and poor communication.
Global Affairs Canada said it was aware of reports that Canadian citizens had gone missing.
The department said it is providing consular assistance to the family but couldn't share more because of privacy considerations.
Global Affairs did not immediately respond to further questions about the number of Canadian citizens believed missing and Elagha's criticism.
Elagha said Israeli forces entered the family home in the community of al-Muwasi, near the southern city of Khan Younis, at around 5 a.m. Gaza time on Thursday.
The soldiers tied up and blindfolded the women and children in the family and placed them outside the home, she said.
The trio, along with a mentally disabled uncle and two other adult male relatives, were taken away by the Israelis and remain missing, Elagha said.
Men of a neighbouring household were also taken away. So were other adult male relatives of another Alagha household, for a total of about 20, the U.S. cousin said.
She described them as hostages rather than detainees, citing the family's lack of information on the reason they were taken or where Israeli forces are holding them.
U.S. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the administration will "be talking to our Israeli counterparts" about the reported detentions.
The State Department said Thursday it was seeking more information on the reported detentions. It cited privacy concerns for the brothers in not commenting further.
More than 27,000 Palestinians, the majority of them civilians, have been killed in the ongoing Israeli military offensive in Gaza, according to Palestinian health officials in the Hamas-ruled territory.
The latest war started when Hamas militants stormed Israel four months ago, killing about 1,200 people and taking roughly 250 hostages.
Nearly 85 per cent of the Gaza Strip's population has been displaced during the conflict, with a huge number of people now crowding the area just outside the Rafah border crossing with Egypt.
Foreign nationals, including Canadians, have been able to leave the besieged territory by way of that tightly controlled border crossing, though only on certain dates and after an opaque vetting process involving multiple governments.
Elagha said she successfully got her grandparents out of Gaza as they were Canadian citizens, but she criticized Canadian officials for being hard to reach at the time.
She said the same problem arose this week, alleging Global Affairs Canada is not taking the situation seriously.
"Canada has been giving very boilerplate-language responses. We haven't received anything substantive," Elagha said.
"It doesn't seem to be responding to the urgency of the matter of these Canadian lives at stake."
The news comes as a Palestinian-Canadian who was reported missing in the Gaza Strip emerged Monday after two weeks of losing contact with relatives.
Mansour Shouman opted against following his wife and children in leaving Gaza, instead staying to document the humanitarian crisis in the Palestinian enclave amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.
Shouman was said to have been taken by Israeli forces, though he said in a video posted online that he had instead left his phone behind while heading out to check on a project, and then had to shelter in several locations during a series of attacks.
Elagha said she is hoping her relatives turn up safe. For now, she's fuming at Ottawa's "hypocritical" statements about prioritizing the safety of citizens abroad.
"The Canadian government has a duty to protect the citizens abroad, and it is fully failing that duty," she said. "It feels like a betrayal."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 8, 2024
IN DEPTH
Jagmeet Singh pulls NDP out of deal with Trudeau Liberals, takes aim at Poilievre Conservatives
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh has pulled his party out of the supply-and-confidence agreement that had been helping keep Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's minority Liberals in power.
'Not the result we wanted': Trudeau responds after surprise Conservative byelection win in Liberal stronghold
Conservative candidate Don Stewart winning the closely-watched Toronto-St. Paul's federal byelection, and delivering a stunning upset to Justin Trudeau's candidate Leslie Church in the long-time Liberal riding, has sent political shockwaves through both parties.
'We will go with the majority': Liberals slammed by opposition over proposal to delay next election
The federal Liberal government learned Friday it might have to retreat on a proposal within its electoral reform legislation to delay the next vote by one week, after all opposition parties came out to say they can't support it.
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government鈥檚 three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party鈥檚 popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn鈥檛 be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Nanos survey says most Canadians support expansion of Old Age Security benefits, but economic experts call it 'terrible policy'
Amid new polling indicating most Canadians support boosting Old Age Security benefits by 10 per cent for seniors aged 65 to 74, a former Liberal finance minister and former Bank of Canada governor are warning the government not to pursue the policy change.
A Manitoba man convicted of murder 50 years ago has been acquitted. Clarence Woodhouse was found guilty in 1974 of fatally beating and stabbing a restaurant worker in downtown Winnipeg.
An Ontario child has died after coming in contact with a rabid bat, a health official confirmed on Wednesday.
Los Angeles prosecutors to review new evidence in Menendez brothers' 1996 murder conviction
Prosecutors in Los Angeles are reviewing new evidence in the case of Erik and Lyle Menendez to determine whether they should be serving life sentences for killing their parents in their Beverly Hills mansion more than 35 years ago, the city's district attorney said Thursday.
Garth Brooks accused of rape in lawsuit from hair-and-makeup artist
A woman who says she worked as a hair-and-makeup stylist for Garth Brooks alleged in a lawsuit filed Thursday that he raped her in a Los Angeles hotel in 2019.
Melania Trump says she supports abortion rights, putting her at odds with the GOP
Melania Trump revealed her support for abortion rights Thursday ahead of the release of her upcoming memoir, exposing a stark contrast with her husband, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, on the crucial election issue.
Parliament 'ground to a halt' over Conservative allegations of Liberal corruption
Government business has been put on indefinite pause in the House of Commons and the Conservatives say it will stay that way until the Liberals hand over documents related to misspent government dollars.
Breast cancer patient says she had to lie to get a mammogram in Ontario
When an Ontario doctor refused to sign off on a mammogram for 38-year-old Sidra Lone, the mother of four says she was left with no choice but to lie.
184 passengers and crew evacuated as Ryanair Boeing plane catches fire on runway in Italy
More than 180 people were evacuated Thursday from a Ryanair Boeing passenger jet after it caught fire while taxiing to take off at Brindisi Airport in southern Italy.
Local Spotlight
The grave of a previously unknown Canadian soldier has been identified as a man from Hayfield, Man. who fought in the First World War.
Moving into the second week of October, the eastern half of Canada can expect some brisker fall air to break down from the north
What does New Westminster's t蓹m蓹sew虛tx史 Aquatic and Community Centre have in common with a historic 68,000-seat stadium in Beijing, an NFL stadium and the aquatics venue for the Paris Olympics? They've all been named among the world's most beautiful sports venues for 2024.
The last living member of the legendary Vancouver Asahi baseball team, Kaye Kaminishi, died on Saturday, Sept. 28, surrounded by family. He was 102 years old.
New data from Greater Vancouver and the Fraser Valley shows a surge in supply and drop in demand in the region's historically hot real estate market.
On Saturday night at her parents鈥 home in Delaware, Ont. the Olympic bronze medallist in pole vault welcomed everyone who played a role in getting her to the podium in Paris.
A tale about a taxicab hauling gold and sinking through the ice on Larder Lake, Ont., in December 1937 has captivated a man from that town for decades.
When a group of B.C. filmmakers set out on a small fishing boat near Powell River last week, they hoped to capture some video for a documentary on humpback whales. What happened next blew their minds.
A pizza chain in Edmonton claims to have the world's largest deliverable pizza.