There is hope more Canadians will soon be able to leave the Gaza Strip, after Qatar announced a truce-for-hostages deal between Israel and Hamas that would bring a four-day halt in fighting in the devastating six-week war. Qatar's Foreign Ministry which had led weeks of indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas said it would announce within a day when the clock will start ticking on the truce, during which 50 hostages will be released in stages in exchange for what Hamas said would be 150 Palestinians prisoners held by Israel. The Israeli government said it would extend the lull by an ad

Immigration Minister Marc Miller says he's happy to hear that Canadians can once again get electronic tourist visas to India after two months of diplomatic tensions. Word of the change came from an Indian foreign ministry official, who spoke to The Associated Press on the condition they not be named because they were not authorized to talk to reporters. In September, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced there were "credible allegations" that India was involved in the killing of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.The 45-year-old was shot by masked gunmen outside a Surrey, B.C., gurdwara in

International students in Canada will soon be unable to work more than 20 hours a week.In November last year, the then immigration minister Sean Fraser removed this limit, which expires on December 31, 2023.A spokesperson for the Immigration Department said the move was intended to provide more opportunities for eligible international students to gain better work experience in Canada and increase the presence of workers to sustain economic growth after the pandemic.The ban on working hours was lifted from 15 November 2022 to 31 December 2023 to deal with labor shortages.The new policy was for

Canadians in the Gaza Strip, eager to escape the bloody conflict between Israel and Hamas, may have to wait a little longer to leave.As of 4 a.m. Eastern, the General Authority for Crossings and Borders had yet to update its daily list of approved foreign passport holders authorized to exit Gaza and enter Egypt.The Canadian government says that as of Wednesday afternoon, it was in touch with 386 people still in the besieged territory.Global Affairs Canada says, so far, 367 Canadians, permanent residents and their relatives have been able to escape via the Rafah border crossing, most recently i

There are no Canadians mentioned in an updated list of foreign nationals who are being allowed to leave the Gaza Strip today.The General Authority for Crossings and Borders published the latest document on its Facebook page early this morning.Global Affairs Canada said Wednesday that a total of 367 Canadian citizens, permanent residents and family members have been able to get out, including nine people who left without the Canadian government's help.Two more people were able to travel to Egypt via the Rafah border crossing on Wednesday, and 10 made the trip on Monday.The Canadian government s

Qatar mediators have presented a new proposal to Israel and Hamas in which some of the hostages can be released in exchange for an end to the war.Hamas is said to be holding 240 people it took hostage after the October 7 attack on Israel and are currently in Gaza.According to reports, under the proposal that Qatar officials are trying to convince Israel and Hamas, Hamas has set the condition of stopping the war for three days and in return has agreed to release 50 hostages.Officials said Hamas is close to agreeing to the deal, but Israel has not yet agreed and negotiations are ongoing.It is wo

Israeli forces have entered Gaza's largest hospital in what the military says is a targeted operation to destroy Hamas positions and weapons.According to Israel, Hamas is operating a command center in tunnels under the hospital, a claim the US has also supported, citing intelligence.At the same time, the name of any Canadian is not included among the people leaving through the Rafah border crossing for Wednesday.Even on Tuesday, no person belonging to Canada could cross the border.Only 10 people belonging to Canada were able to reach Egypt on Monday, including a total of 356 Canadians and thei

Some 266 Canadian citizens, permanent residents and their family members had their names added to the list of foreign passport holders allowed to exit the Gaza Strip today.Officials at the Rafah border crossing into Egypt were expected to start processing the latest batch of people looking to flee the latest Israel-Hamas conflict around 7 a.m. local time.Another 32 people connected to Canada were able to leave the Gaza Strip on Thursday, after an initial 75 citizens, permanent residents and family members made the trip on Tuesday.No Canadians were able to cross via official means on Wednesday

A key crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt has remained closed today as hundreds of people connected to Canada await news of when and whether they will be able to escape the besieged Palestinian territory.The federal government confirmed that no Canadians were able to leave the Gaza Strip on Wednesday because of a closure of the Rafah border crossing.A U.S. State Department spokesperson told reporters on Wednesday that the closure was because of a "security circumstance," but offered little additional detail.Global Affairs Canada says Canadian officials in Egypt remain ready to welcome th