Tehran Blacklists Canada’s Navy After Ottawa Brands IRG a Terror Group

By Staff, Agencies

Iran has formally designated the Royal Canadian Navy as a terrorist organization, citing the principle of reciprocity after Canada’s move to list the Islamic Revolution Guards [IRG] as a terrorist entity.

In a statement issued Tuesday, Iran’s Foreign Ministry said the decision was taken under the law on “Reciprocal Action Against the US Designation of the Islamic Revolution Guards as a ‘Terrorist Organization’,” with its provisions extended to include Canada. The ministry described Ottawa’s designation of the IRG as an “illegal decision” that targets a core component of Iran’s official armed forces and violates basic norms of international law.

According to the statement, Tehran acted in line with Article 7 of the 2019 law, which mandates reciprocal measures against any country that follows or supports the US designation of the IRG. On that basis, the Royal Canadian Navy was identified and officially announced as a terrorist organization.

The Foreign Ministry said the step was a direct response to Canada’s action last year and part of what it called Ottawa’s long-standing hostile posture toward Iran. Canada severed diplomatic relations with Tehran in 2012 and shut its embassy, citing Iran’s regional policies, nuclear program, and alleged threats to the “Israeli” regime.

That same year, however, Canada removed the Mujahedin-e-Khalq Organization [MKO] from its terrorist list, despite the group’s public admission of carrying out attacks that killed thousands of Iranian officials and civilians. Iranian officials have long pointed to the delisting as evidence of double standards, noting that the MKO spent years lobbying and millions of dollars to secure its removal.

On June 19, 2024, Canada officially added the IRG to its list of terrorist organizations, a move that Iranian authorities strongly condemned at the time. Tehran has consistently rejected such designations, arguing they have no legal foundation and erode international norms governing state-to-state relations.

Iran has previously imposed sanctions on Canadian officials over similar issues. In November 2022, Tehran sanctioned eight Canadian officials and one institution for backing anti-Iran groups and acts of terror, including support for the MKO.

Iranian officials have also accused Canada of serving as a long-standing safe haven for Iranian fugitives accused of major financial crimes. Among them is Mahmoud Reza Khavari, a former banker who fled to Canada after a $2.6 billion fraud case surfaced in Iran in 2011, with Tehran saying Ottawa has refused to pursue his extradition.