Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly has confirmed the death of an Israeli with ties to Canada who had been missing. This news comes in the midst of the ongoing repercussions from Hamas’s surprise attacks on Israel. Joly expressed her condolences to the family of Tiferet Lapidot, one of three Canadians who were reported missing after Hamas ambushed southern Israel on October 7. This attack resulted in the death of more than 1,400 people and sparked a war that has claimed the lives of over 4,000 individuals on both sides.
During her recent trip to Israel, Minister Joly met with Lapidot’s Canadian father and uncle in Tel Aviv. Lapidot’s uncle described her as a brilliant and beautiful young woman.
The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs identified Lapidot as an Israeli woman with Canadian parents. They released a statement noting that her family requested the news of her death to be shared with the media.
Minister Joly revealed that there are still two Canadians missing, and two additional flights organized by Canada’s military are departing from Tel Aviv today to aid citizens, permanent residents, and their families in leaving the country. So far, 1,300 Canadians have been airlifted out of Israel. Joly also encouraged people to leave Lebanon, where clashes between Hezbollah fighters and the Israeli military have begun along the shared border.