While Ottawa is changing the rules to help Canadians and permanent residents get their extended family out of Gaza yesterday the minister of immigration announced the temporary measures we understand uh that many are concerned about the safety of loved ones currently residing in Gaza it is unlivable and as such we’ll be
Supporting temporary resident for temporary residents for extended family members of Canadian citizens and permanent residents in Gaza so they can come to Canada and be reunited with their family members residing here Miller says those people can apply for a fee exempt study or open work permit but
There are a lot of obstacles people leaving Gaza still have to be screened by Israel and the announcement was short on details so there are unanswered questions about the process of coming to Canada well for more on this I want to bring in my next guest he says he is
Hopeful that ottawa’s move will help him reunite with his family Ronnie hamade is is a Canadian with family currently in Gaza he joins us now from Hamilton Ontario thank you sir for taking the time I want to sort of to take you back to for a moment here when you first
Heard of The Minister’s announcement yesterday what emotions did that bring up for you uh I was uh very thrilled same as many uh Palestinian Canadian and permanent residents in Canada we were very happy we waited for this for very long we have been calling the government for the last two months to act
Uh immediately to do this I was very happy it was a thrilled it was that yesterday was the first night I really slept well you know knowing that there is a hope to bring my family here to Canada reunite with them as you said hopefully that reuniting will happen
Relatively soon what is the latest that you have heard from your family in Gaza about their situation so I I haven’t heard anything from my family the last three days um there was a a connection cut the last two days and getting in touch with them
Is really difficult um U so I haven’t been able to tell them this news I have my brother who was uh when uh before October 7 he was traveling out of Gaza at that time so he’s stuck in Egypt right now with his kids and his wife in
Gaza I’m he’s the only one I converted I I told the message that’s you know we have a program they’re going to be here soon and he was very happy because he’d been contacting me all this time and says like Ronnie you’re the hope you
Know we have nothing left in us our home was destroyed you know my business destroyed everything we have there’s no life left and you are the hope and to bring them here so he was happy to to hear this news as they said the hope hope is so
Important and so difficult for so many right now I understand and you you just mentioned it a little moment ago that you’ve been campaigning for this for quite some time do you feel with this announcement that you have finally been heard by the government of
Canada so uh this is a really as I said this we’ve been campaigning and calling the government for the last two months you know uh uh we we felt myself and the Palestinian community in Canada you know we felt abandoned by the government that we have been calling and we we we felt
Like we’re not heard and and we said this myself and many palestinia this is like you know there’s there two options here is the government not hearing us or they just don’t care about us or our feelings that we have been calling them we were very happy and thrilled with
This news you know it’s uh late it could have been done a while ago Australia done it 30 days ago Canada is today we are 77 in this world uh I could have my family celebrating this holiday with me today you know my my daughter she came home I was like
Today the last day of school and we were hoping to have them to spend these two weeks of winter vacation together with my family so until now you know as the minister Miller stated that the the the portal of registration or applying for them will be up and running by January
9th there is a lot of fears on then and then we we have so much uh so let so little details about what is the process how long once we once if the program open on January 9th how long that will take to be approved how long to put them
In the evacuation list and then we will go with the next step which going with the biometric in Egypt where I can see they will be safe there you know but until not them being out of Gaza I will continue having the Fe for my family you
Know I I could lose them any second a terrifying reality to have to live with that kind of stress uh Ronnie very much my heart goes out to you there I wonder though because there are still so many questions um so many things that are details of this that are unclear for
Example Poli people who are applying for this Visa will have to provide proof of their ties to Canada but we have seen the video coming out of Gaza the images of flattened buildings of flattened whole blocks of of communities How concerned are you by this that given
That some people may not have the documents that those documents may have been destroyed or misplaced during this War I I’m I’m very concerned you know once this announcement was made as you said there was campaigning and uh my number and my email is out in the community I started receiving the emails
And calls from the community and I was like you know was like my family doesn’t have have a passport my family doesn’t have a birth certificate you know like it’s lost under you know the rubble of their house and all these things comes up and and and the community is still
Very concerned and I was like we don’t know I mean I we assume the government knows that right as you said we have seen houses is destroyed and and I would expect that the government seeing this so I think that the most important thing for the government is to uh start the
Process try getting people to each egpt once they are in Egypt you know there is a Palestinian Embassy in Cairo they can work in issuing these documents that people who doesn’t have to you know reissuing it from the Palestinian uh Embassy in Cairo applying it for completing the process in Cairo so there
Is a lot of concern a lot of question but uh the announcement was very short with very little information we still have many questions many concern it will not be answered before we see the uh the full details of the program more details to come more questions to be answered
But as you said Ronnie hope remains thank you so much for your time tonight Ronnie Hamed is a Canadian with family currently in Gaza
The federal government’s announcement to change visa rules to help Canadians and permanent residents get their families out of Gaza has raised many questions. Rani Hermaid, who has family stuck in Gaza, says he’s concerned about their safety and that the government’s announcement lacked details.
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