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Türkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan warned Tuesday that the Middle East war could turn into a “permanent” refugee crisis if it spreads beyond current conflict zones.
“If the war… spreads, there is a possibility this will turn into a permanent refugee crisis with refugees seeking shelter outside the borders of their countries,” Fidan said at a joint news conference in Ankara with Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand.
“This needs to stop as soon as possible,” he added.
Fidan also warned the war “could lead to permanent damage.. between countries of the region,” pointing to the conflict spreading across Lebanon and becoming more complicated in Iraq.
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Lebanon was drawn into the conflict on March 2 when Iran-backed Hezbollah attacked Israel following the killing of Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei during U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran.
Since then, more than one million people have registered as displaced, Lebanese authorities said Monday, representing more than a sixth of the country’s population.
The development came as Israel’s military said it had launched a limited ground operation against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.
“The humanitarian situation is deeply concerning in Lebanon and has the potential to worsen if there is a ground offensive there,” Anand said.
Fidan said Türkiye has been “working very hard diplomatically since the outbreak of the war to prevent these crises from escalating,” adding that he will travel to several countries in the region on Wednesday.
Anand said Canada appreciates Türkiye’s diplomatic efforts and its “role as an interlocutor in the current Middle East conflict.”
She also expressed opposition to Iran’s strikes in the region.
“Canada absolutely condemns those retaliatory strikes.. Those retaliatory strikes must stop, whether they are in Doha or even against this very country,” Anand said.
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