Global Affairs confirms Canadian death in Lebanon, 8th since Israel-Hamas war began

Global Affairs Canada is announcing the death of an eighth Canadian citizen in the Israel-Hamas war.

The department says the death was in Lebanon, but offered no further details in an update Sunday evening.

It says 130 Canadians left Gaza through the Rafah crossing on the border with Egypt after it reopened to foreign nationals this weekend.

Seven Canadians and one person with deep connections to Canada were killed in the initial Hamas-led attack in Israel that killed about 1,200 mostly civilians on Oct. 7.

One Canadian remains missing, but has not been identified by Global Affairs.

Israel’s military said Sunday its ground offensive had expanded to every part of Gaza, and it ordered more areas in and around the region’s second-largest city of Khan Younis to evacuate.

Heavy bombardments were reported overnight and into Sunday in Khan Younis as well as Rafah itself, where Israel says many Hamas leaders are hiding.

Israel vowed its efforts in southern Gaza would be of “no less strength” than its attacks in northern Gaza.

Many of the territory’s 2.3 million people are crammed in the south after Israeli forces ordered civilians to leave the north in the early days of the two-month-old war.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 3, 2023.

— with files from The Associated Press