Canada summoned Israel’s ambassador to request a full probe into the killing of Canadian citizen Mohammad Hassan Haidar in southern Lebanon, Anita Anand said.
“We did speak with the Israeli ambassador and we requested that Israel undertake a full and transparent investigation,” Anand told CBC News before a weekly cabinet meeting. A spokesperson for her office, Myah Tomasi, said Canada’s ambassador to Israel, Leslie Scanlon, also met with Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which agreed to conduct a probe.
Haidar’s family said at a news conference in Windsor, Ont., last week that he was killed in a drone attack on April 10 in the southern Lebanese community of Qana while trying to help an injured person outside his home. Israel has not claimed responsibility for the incident. CBC News said it sought comment from the Israeli Embassy about Haidar’s death and the ambassador’s meeting with Canadian officials but received no response.
Anand said officials were “very adamant that this investigation is extremely important.” She said Israeli Ambassador Iddo Moed was summoned last week for the démarche.
It is the third time since last spring that Anand has summoned Moed. In May 2025, she did so after the Israeli military fired shots near a diplomatic delegation that included Canadians; the military said the group had deviated from an approved route. In December, Anand summoned Moed again after Canadian MPs were blocked from entering the West Bank and Jerusalem; Israel said the delegation was sponsored by a group it considers a terrorist organization, even though similar travel earlier in the year had been permitted.
Canada has previously asked Israel to investigate incidents involving Canadians. In August 2024, then–International Development Minister Ahmed Hussen sought a probe into the demolition of a Canadian-funded water treatment plant in Gaza. Earlier that year, then–prime minister Justin Trudeau called for “very clear answers” after Canadian aid worker Jacob Flickinger was killed in a strike in Gaza; the Israel Defense Forces later called that strike a mistake and expressed regret. Global Affairs Canada said it received an update from Israel in September 2024 about the water plant case but declined to share the findings.
Canadian officials now await the results of Israel’s inquiry into Haidar’s death. Key details, including who was responsible for the strike that killed him, remain unconfirmed.
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