Ottawa Monitoring Reports of Iran’s Threats Against Dissidents in Canada: Trudeau

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks at a demonstration across the Alexandra Bridge in Ottawa on Oct. 29, 2022. Scores of demonstrators lined the streets of several major Canadian cities as part of a worldwide "human chain" organized by the Association of Families of Flight PS752 Victims in solidarity with antigovernment protesters in Iran. The Canadian Press/Justin Tang

Ottawa is aware of reports of state actors from the Islamic Republic of Iran intimidating dissidents living in Canada, said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

“We are constantly watching and evaluating the threats posed to Canadians by foreign interference from a range of countries,” Trudeau told reporters at the Francophonie Summit in Djerba, Tunisia, on Nov. 20.

“But obviously Iran is a significant concern these days, with not just the extraordinary heroics of women and girls in Iran standing up to that regime … We also know there are significant concerns about Iranians interfering with the wellbeing of Canadian citizens here in Canada.”

Trudeau was responding to a question regarding a CBC report that says the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) is investigating what it described as multiple “lethal threats to Canadians and people located in Canada.”

“Ultimately, these hostile activities and foreign interference undermine the security of Canada and Canadians, as well as our democratic values and sovereignty,” CSIS spokesperson Eric Balsam told CBC News in a statement.

Trudeau said on Nov. 20 that the federal government has introduced a series of sanctions against the Iranian regime.

“We’re putting some of the most serious penalties on the Iranian regime of any country in the world,” he said.

“We’re banning for life top leaders of Iran, including the leaders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), making sure they can never benefit from Canada, interfere in Canada, or consider Canada a safe haven.”

Threats Against Canadians

Trudeau last month joined families of the victims of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 in a coordinated country-wide “human chain” rally, calling for revolution in Iran.

Flight 752 was shot down by the IRGC shortly after takeoff on Jan. 8, 2020, killing all 176 passengers and crew aboard.

Family members of the Flight 752 victims in Canada who have criticized the government in Tehran have reported to the RCMP that they have been targeted for threats and intimidation from Iran, reported CBC News.

Ottawa has also condemned Iran’s “pattern of intimidation and foreign interference” after U.S. authorities laid charges last year against an Iranian intelligence agent and three others for plotting to kidnap five individuals, including three from Canada, to take them to Iran.

Condemnation

Massive protests have erupted across Iran in response to the Sept. 16 death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who died in Tehran while in the custody of Iran’s morality police for “inappropriate attire.”

As of Nov. 21, more than 430 people—including at least 60 children—have been killed, while roughly 17,500 have been detained in relation to the protests, according to Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), the press association of an Iranian human rights organization.

HRANA also cited the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk, who said the rising death toll in Iran, particularly that of children, underlines the “critical” situation in the country.

“We urge the authorities to address people’s demands for equality, dignity and rights – instead of using unnecessary or disproportionate force to suppress the protests,” Türk said in a Nov. 22 news release. “The lack of accountability for gross human rights violations in Iran remains persistent and is contributing to the growing grievances.”

On Nov. 16, Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly announced the government’s latest economic sanctions against Iran, adding two aviation companies, Shahed Aviation Industries and Qods Aviation Industries, to Canada’s sanctions list for their ties to the IRGC.