Canada booking seats on commercial flights to help citizens flee Lebanon

(Reuters) - The Canadian government is booking seats on commercial flights to help its citizens leave Lebanon, Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs Melanie Joly said on Friday, after Israeli airstrikes rocked the capital Beirut.

"Canada has secured seats for Canadians on the limited commercial flights available," Joly said in a statement on social media.

"If a seat is available, please take it."

This week, Israeli airstrikes have killed more than 700 people in Lebanon, an escalation that has raised fears of an even more destructive conflict.

Joly urged Canadians to register with the embassy in Beirut if they needed help leaving and said loans were available to those requiring financial assistance.

(Reporting by Nia Williams in British Columbia; Editing by Richard Chang)