Canada will list Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a branch of the Iranian Armed Forces, as a terrorist group.
Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc made the announcement Wednesday afternoon, vowing Canada will “use all of the tools at its disposal” to combat the IRGC’s activity in Canada.
It is a crime to knowingly deal with the assets of a listed terrorist entity under Canada’s Criminal Code. Charitable organizations can lose their status if they maintain their connections to terrorist groups, and people found to be associated with those groups can be denied entry into Canada. It also allows banks to freeze assets.
LeBlanc said the IRGC has demonstrated “disregard for human rights both inside and outside of Iran.”
In January, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said publically he was open to the move, so long as it was done “responsibly.” He made the remarks during a vigil for victims of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752, which was shot down by the IRGC over Tehran on Jan. 8, 2020.
The IRGC said the plane was mistaken for a hostile target. Of the 176 people killed when the plane was shot down, 55 were Canadian citizens, and 30 were permanent residents.
Victims’ family members have been calling on Canada to designate the IRGC as a terrorist organization for years.
“This demand has been out there for a long time,” said Hamed Esmaeilion of The Association of Families of Flight PS752 Victims. “We want to see any financial ties of the IRGC (to be) charged as criminal activity.”
“The regime in Iran is brutal, repressive, theocratic and misogynist. Our government has taken strong action to counter that regime, and we are definitely focused on taking further action,” Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland told reporters earlier on Wednesday.
The United States designated the IRCC a terrorist group in 2019 under the Trump administration – a title President Joe Biden has maintained.
This is a breaking news story. More details to come.
With files from CTV News’ Vassy Kapelos
