Türkiye is upset that the Greek Patriarchate signed the statement of the Ukraine conference in Switzerland

On Thursday, Iran threatened to respond to an “irresponsible” decision by the Canadian government. By including the “Revolutionary Guard” on the list of terrorist organizations, and holding Justin Trudeau’s government responsible for the consequences. The move may lead to the opening of an investigation against former senior Iranian officials currently living in Canada.

Canada announced, on Wednesday, the inclusion of the Revolutionary Guards, the parallel body of the Iranian regular army, on its blacklist, accusing Tehran of “supporting terrorism” and “demonstrating a continued disregard for human rights inside and outside Iran, as well as a willingness to destabilize the law-based international order.”

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wrote on social media: “(The Revolutionary Guard) is now listed as a terrorist organization in Canada.”

The Minister of Public Security, Dominique LeBlanc, announced in a joint press conference with the Canadian Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Justice that the Canadian Liberal government “has taken the decision to include the Iranian Revolutionary Guard on the list of terrorist entities under criminal laws.”

The step came after many months of pressure exerted by lawmakers representing the opposition to classify the Iranian Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organization. On May 19, the Canadian House of Commons voted unanimously on a non-binding draft law for the government, submitted by the Justice Committee, to include the Revolutionary Guard on the list of terrorist organizations.

The Trudeau government previously refused to implement this measure, indicating that it could have “unintended consequences.” In October 2022, Ottawa stated that the move might unfairly threaten Iranians in Canada who fled their country, but were recruited into the Revolutionary Guard and are still there.

But LeBlanc answered a question about the reasons for the delay in the decision, explaining that the step “was taken based on the law, after consulting the security services, and not as a result of political pressure,” accusing the Iranian regime of “supporting terrorism” and “demonstrating continued disregard for human rights inside and outside Iran, as well as About the willingness to destabilize the international law-based order.” He added: “Senior current and former Iranian government officials in Canada may be investigated and deported.”

For her part, Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Jolie noted that Ottawa severed diplomatic relations with Tehran in 2012, and urged Canadians not to travel to Iran. “For those in Iran now, it is time to come home,” she said.

In Tehran, acting Foreign Minister Mohammad Bagheri Kani described the action against the Revolutionary Guards as “illegal” and said: “The Canadian government will be responsible for the consequences of this provocative and irresponsible decision.”

Bagheri Kani wrote on the “X” platform: “(The Revolutionary Guard) is an integral part of the official military force of the Islamic Republic,” and continued: “It has no equal in defending the national security and territorial integrity of Iran, and protecting security and stability in the region (…) ».

Bagheri Kani added that it is “a malicious step, violates international principles and rules, and is a gift to the regime that commits genocide, terrorists and enemies of regional peace and stability.”

This came after Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani denounced the Canadian move, describing it as “an unwise, unconventional and politically motivated move,” according to Reuters.

Kanaani said: “Canada’s step will not have any impact on the legitimacy of (the Revolutionary Guard) and its deterrent power,” adding that Tehran reserves the right to respond to that classification.

In turn, Deputy Secretary for International Judicial Affairs and Secretary of the Human Rights Committee, Kazem Gharibabadi, said in a statement: “We strongly condemn the hostile action that violates the principles of international law taken by Canada.”

He added: “It is ironic that a country considered a major violator of human rights and a supporter of terrorism would place the name of the Revolutionary Guard, which is responsible for protecting national security and combating terrorism in the region, on its list of terrorist organizations.”

Kanaani said in a statement that this was a “hostile measure.” He added, “This irresponsible and provocative action falls within the framework of the wrong path that the Canadian government has taken for more than a decade,” explaining that Tehran reserves the right to provide a “…proportionate response.”

Based on this decision, Canada can freeze the assets of the organization’s members and prosecute them in court, in addition to banning all financial transactions. The police have the right to charge anyone who supports them financially or in a tangible way.

The Canadian blacklist includes about 80 entities, including Hamas, Al-Qaeda, Lebanese Hezbollah, the Taliban, ISIS, and Boko Haram. The Quds Force, the foreign operations arm of the Revolutionary Guard, was included on this list.

Thus, Canada follows the United States, which blacklisted the Revolutionary Guard in 2019, and Western countries accuse the Revolutionary Guard of waging a global terror campaign.

European politicians called on their countries to do the same. German Member of the European Parliament Hanna Neumann said: “Let us join Canada and some other countries and include (the Iranian Revolutionary Guard) on the list of terrorist organizations.”

Since the protests that took place in Iran following the death of the young woman, Mahsa Amini, in 2022, Ottawa has imposed a series of sanctions on Iranian organizations and officials. Canada prevented 10,000 Iranian officials from entering its territory, including officers in the Revolutionary Guard.

Iranians abroad and the families of the victims of the Ukrainian plane flight PS752, which Iran shot down shortly after takeoff from Tehran in January 2020, killing all 176 passengers, including 85 Canadian citizens and permanent residents, have long pressed Ottawa to classify the Guard. The revolutionary “terrorist entity.”

Kourosh Dost Shinas, spokesman for the families of the plane victims, welcomed the inclusion of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard on the terrorist list, and described it as “a major step forward in the search for justice for everyone who was a victim of this organization,” according to Agence France-Presse.

The Association of Families of Ukrainian Plane Victims welcomed the Canadian government’s decision. She referred in a statement to the role of the Revolutionary Guard in shooting down flight PS752, and said in a statement: “Since the founding of the Revolutionary Guard in 1979, it has been working to suppress opponents and protesters not only in Iran, but throughout the world. He also played a major role in suppressing the November 2019 protests and the (Women, Life, Freedom) movement.”

Hamed Ismailioun, a political activist who lost his wife and daughter on Flight PS752, said: “We will never forget and we will never forgive the killers of our loved ones and the killers of Iran’s loved ones.”

In a video, Esmailis thanked the Canadian government and political activists, as well as “the brave Iranian people who stand up to this hellish organization.”