Canada's Foreign Minister Melanie Joly
Canada has extended its list of sanctions on the Islamic Republic’s officials over the regime’s human rights violations such as denial of women’s rights and crackdown on protests.
In a statement issued on Friday, Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly announced that Canada is imposing additional sanctions under the Special Economic Measures (Iran) Regulations.
The additional sanctions target four individuals and five entities that Ottawa said were tied to Tehran's "systematic human rights violations" and actions that "threaten international peace and security."
“Despite the Iranian regime intensifying efforts to brutally repress demonstrations across the country, the people of Iran continue to stand up for the rights of Iranian women and girls, and a better future for all Iranians,” read the statement, adding that "Canada will not stand idly by while the regime’s human rights violations increase in scope and intensity against the Iranian people."
The new list included a Revolutionary Guard commander Morteza Talaei, who was also former Commander of Tehran’s police; Ali Ghanaatkar Mavardiani, a senior judge, prosecutor and interrogator of the regime who used to work in Evin Prison Court; and Hassan Karami, Commander of the Islamic Republic’s Law Enforcement Forces Special Units.
The new blacklisted entities include Safiran Airport Services, a cargo and commercial airline that has coordinated military flights between Iran and Russia, sending lethal Iranian-made Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) to Russia. Another is Baharestan Kish Company, a subsidiary firm of the IRGC Cooperative Foundation that has entered into agreements with the Basij paramilitary forces to develop Shahed-series UAV components. Canada also sanctioned Javan News Agency, a media outlet under the Basij that disseminates anti-Semitic messaging and the Iranian regime’s propaganda.