Canada to pull diplomats' children out of Israel, foreign ministry says

Canada decided to pull the children of its diplomats and their guardians out of Israel on Wednesday amid fears of a widened conflict in the Middle East, the Canadian foreign ministry said.

Israel's tensions with Iran and Hezbollah have fanned fears of a broader conflict in a region already on edge amid Israel's war on Gaza, which has killed almost 40,000 Palestinians and caused a humanitarian crisis, including widespread hunger.

There has been an increased risk of escalation into a broader Middle East war after the killings of Palestinian Islamist group Hamas' leader Ismail Haniyeh in Iran and of Hezbollah military commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut drew threats of retaliation against Israel.

The foreign ministry, in a statement on Thursday, said it had approved temporarily relocating the diplomats' children and their guardians to a safe third country. It added that diplomats stationed in Ramallah in the West Bank, and in Beirut do not have dependents living with them.

Canada on Saturday warned citizens to avoid all travel to Israel, saying the regional armed conflict endangered security. It also urges its citizens not to travel to Gaza and the West Bank.

The embassies in Tel Aviv and Beirut and the representative office to the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank "all remain fully operational and continue to provide essential services to Canadians," the ministry said in a statement.

Countries worldwide have urged their citizens to refrain from travelling to Lebanon, Israel and Iran amid tensions in the Middle East.

The United States last week urged its citizens not to travel to Lebanon.

South Korea on Tuesday said it will ban its citizens from travelling to the border areas of Israel and Lebanon after advising them to leave the countries.

Britain and Egypt had also asked their airlines on Wednesday to avoid Iranian and Lebanese airspace.

Poland last week advised its citizens against travelling to Lebanon, Israel and Iran, and Japan's Foreign Ministry urged its citizens not to visit Israel in a travel alert.

(Reuters)