Palestinian Winnipeggers anxiously wait to hear from relatives in Gaza, West Bank amid violence

Palestinians in Winnipeg are waiting for word from relatives in Gaza and the West Bank as the deadliest conflict between Israel and Palestinian militants in 50 years has killed more than 2,000 on both sides.

Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that holds power in the Gaza Strip, launched a stunning surprise attack on Israel early Saturday, prompting Israel to declare war.

The current fight has been the deadliest in half a century, with more than 2,000 people killed on both sides. More than a quarter of a million people have been also been made homeless in Gaza, according to the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees.

Selena Zeid, 21, is trying to focus on her studies, but the University of Manitoba student says her heart is with family members in the Palestinian territories.

"It's very concerning. It's hard, especially with school — exams and everything are coming up," Zeid told CBC News on Wednesday.

"It is just very difficult to focus on what's happening here when there's great death happening there."

'It's scary'

Israel has also ordered what it has described as a complete siege of Gaza, blocking everything from electricity and fuel to food and water from entering, and an on-the-ground offensive is expected.

While she has relatives who live in Gaza, Zeid's aunt and cousin from Winnipeg are in the West Bank. She last spoke with them about a week ago, before the latest outbreak of violence in the region.

Zeid says it has been difficult to get in touch with her aunt and cousin, and she hopes they can get back to Canada safely.

"We are trying to figure out how we can get them back, get in touch with them any way that we can. We're constantly sending messages to them just seeing if we can get ahold of them," she said.

Her family in the West Bank are safer than Palestinians in Gaza, but Zeid says "it's like the unexpected can happen at any moment. It's scary."

On Wednesday, Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly said two Canadians are dead and a third is presumed dead as a result of the conflict in Israel. Three other Canadians are missing in the region, according to Global Affairs Canada.

Global Affairs Canada says there are nearly 500 Canadians registered in the Palestinian territories but didn't have a breakdown of how many are in the Gaza Strip.

The Canadian Armed Forces are sending two CC-150 Airbus planes to the region to evacuate Canadians from Israel to Athens, where Air Canada has a hub. The federal government says it is also working on a plan to get Canadians who can't make it to Tel Aviv out of Gaza and the West Bank, possibly through Jordan.

Abdallah Alfar, 19, is also a student at the University of Manitoba who has dozens of relatives living in Gaza. He's concerned for their well-being as Israel has vowed to cut off supplies to the region.

His uncle and aunt "barely escaped" from Gaza after the latest wave of violence began on Saturday, but his family has not heard from other family members left in the region despite numerous attempts to try and contact them.

Alfar says he and his family in Winnipeg are not sure whether their family members in Gaza are still alive.

"We have no idea. That's the upsetting part," he said, adding that they have been attempting to contact family through WhatsApp and other third-party apps daily for about a week.

"You just pray one of them picks up the phone on any one of these apps."

Alfar and his family in Winnipeg are holding out hope that they'll hear from someone soon, he said.

"We hold deeply onto our faith, and I know that if they're still alive, they're going to be as resilient as possible."