Canada Pauses Deportations to Middle East Amid Conflict

0:00It's March 24, I'm Cory with the story, and this is Toronto News Today, local news powered by AI. Canada's Border Services Agency is putting a temporary hold on deportations to four more Middle East countries amid the chaos from the U.S. Israel. Conflict with Iran that's spilling over into the region. They're adding the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar, to the pause list on top of the ones already in place for Israel and Lebanon. It's March 5. This administrative deferral protects civilians from a heightened risks, but it skips anyone barred from Canada for serious reasons like crimes, human rights abuses or security threats. Last year alone, the agency deported more than 22,500 inadmissible people, and they're still handling about 400 cases a week right now. Officials plan to lift the pause as soon as the area stabilizes and stops posing broad dangers to everyday folks there.