The Renewed Power of Europe and Its Proximity to China

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With Donald Trump’s return to the scene, his intervention in resolving the Russia-Ukraine clash has gained more traction. Under Trump’s mediation and his support in advancing the negotiations under the guise of ending the war, Russia can potentially preserve its occupied territories in eastern Ukraine. Consequently, Europe, sniffing the geopolitical games as an eminent threat to the continent, is determined to counter it to the degree that according to the European Commission President’s latest statement, “Europe must arm itself.” This echoes Macron’s 2018 statement that Europe needs its own independent army. 

Nevertheless, Ukraine and Western Europe are not the only parties for whom the Trump-Putin alliance has raised serious concerns. China is undoubtedly surveilling the situation closely. 

Given the gravity of such geopolitical equations, the depicted landscape may yield the following:

1)  The impending conflict between Ukraine and White House/Trump’s front will serve as a lever for Europe’s renewed military and economic independence.

2)  In broader terms, this major shift sets the stage for improving Europe’s proximity to China and potentially achieving global power equilibrium. However, Europe’s alignment with China is not ideological but rather commercial and perhaps, one day, military.

The Isolation of the United States

Trump’s strategy assumes that a peace deal in Ukraine would draw Russia closer, potentially creating a rift between Russia and China, weakening the latter. This was Nixon’s gambit, during whose office, the US engaged with China to create divisions among communist countries, pushing Russia away. Yet, such a plan today will likely yield indefensible consequences. Proximity to Russia would isolate US and push Europe towards China, granting the latter added influence.

3) Ultimately, Trump’s America versus Europe’s integrated empowerment and encouragement of China’s presence on the global stage profoundly jeopardizes world peace.

The time has come for both Europe and Canada to act independently of the United States. The Cold War mentality still grips Europe. If Europe enters the scene with full forces, establishing a unified global action with a robust military structure (the process which can be time-consuming, nonetheless), and even reaches some level of understanding with China, it sends alarming signals to both Trump and Putin, possibly urging them to reconsider jeopardizing the peace of the world. Only a third power can pacify these careless forces.

A Multinational European Army

In practice, Europe faces significant obstacles in establishing a powerful multinational military force. The United States and Russia will undoubtedly attempt to create divisions among European states to prevent such plots to advance. Historically, however, Western European nations have demonstrated greater political and strategic cohesion.

Hence, the first step in creating a European multinational army should be to establish its foundation in a core group of Western European nations rather than Eastern ones. This would likely include the United Kingdom, France, and Germany, followed by Italy and, progressively, other nations committed to the European project.

Moreover, if US were to withdraw from NATO, the remaining member states—with some exceptions aside, such as Turkey—might integrate into the new European military structure, transforming it into a powerful and influential force. In this scenario, Northern European nations would face fewer challenges in joining this new military alliance.

Considerations for Breaking the Deadlock

Achieving peace in parallel with these developments requires a series of strategic compromises:

  1. Ukraine must renounce its aspiration to join NATO. This is the most crucial step toward initiating meaningful negotiations to end the ongoing war.
  2. Ukraine must reach an agreement with the United States regarding its underground resources, a scenario that appears increasingly more likely to take hold.
  3. Once such agreement is reached, the United States, in turn, must guarantee Ukraine’s security.
  4. Russia would retain the occupied territories in Ukraine. While this is a contentious proposition, ending the war and preventing its expansion into other countries requires bold initiatives. Ultimately, it appears that this may be the only viable path for Russia’s withdrawal from further conflict.

However, such an agreement requires several key guarantees:

  • First, Russia must pledge not to launch further military aggression against Ukraine or any other European country.
  • Second, to ensure peace, Russia must accept that the United States and European nations act as the supportive guarantors of Ukraine’s security.

This could involve the deployment of Western (US and European) ground troops in Ukraine or the implementation of another security mechanism, which requires further deliberation by experts in the field.

 

Ata Hoodashtian

Ata Hoodashtian, Ph.D., is a Professor of Political Science based in Toronto. His most recent book: "Modern Political Leadership," Baran, Stockholm, 2022.

 

https://www.eurasiareview.com/06032025-breaking-the-ukrainian-impasse-and-rearming-europe-oped/

A B.C. Supreme Court judge has ordered an executive of an Iranian airline that was previously designated a terrorist entity to be extradited to the U.S. for alleged fraud against American banks. Photo by Arlen Redekop /PNG

B.C. judge orders Iranian detainee extradited to U.S. to face fraud, money laundering charges

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Seyed Abood Sari has been battling extradition to U.S., which has a warrant for his arrest for alleged fraud charges, according to a B.C. Supreme Court ruling

By Susan Lazaruk
Published Jan 22, 2025
Last updated Jan 22, 2025
3 minute read

A B.C. Supreme Court judge has ordered an executive of an Iranian airline that was previously designated a terrorist entity to be extradited to the U.S. for alleged fraud against American banks.

 
 

Seyed Abood Sari is “committed to custody to await surrender” to the U.S., according to a judgment released on Tuesday by Justice Michael Tammen.

 

The U.S. requested Sari’s extradition from Canada when he landed in B.C. in 2019 to celebrate his birthday with a ski trip to Whistler with his two sons who were then attending UBC, according to the judgment.

 

The U.S. alleges Sari was the general manager of a Dubai-based company that was a subsidiary of Mahan Air of Iran, he wrote.

Mahan Air, in October 2011, was linked to terrorism by the U.S. government for providing “financial, material and technological support to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force” and subject to sanctions.

 

As a result of those sanctions, many American financial institutions were unwilling to do business with Mahan Air as they would be subject to penalties, Tammen wrote.

 

The U.S. alleges that Sari and others conducted international financial transactions on behalf of Mahan Air by using “front” companies and payment intermediaries to hide Mahan Air’s identity from the banks, he said.

Three elements are required before a Canadian judge can order someone’s extradition: the alleged conduct has to be illegal in Canada, there must be sufficient evidence of the alleged crime and there has to be certainty that the person in question is the person being sought.

 

Tammen found those elements had been met.

 

Tammen said the “entire body of evidence” the U.S. relies on is circumstantial and based on “potentially incriminating inferences” found in various email accounts, including that of Sari’s.

 

The theory is the emails reveal a conspiracy among multiple Mahan Air employees to cause U.S. banks to do business with front companies to benefit Mahan Air, he said.

 
 

Sari argued that the evidence failed to show where he had been the “directing mind” for the transactions, nor did it prove he was in a position of financial authority for any of the companies listed, the judgment said.

 

Sari also said “impermissible speculation and guessing will be required” to show he had been involved in a dishonest transaction or that he knew about them or intended to participate in them, Tammen wrote.

 

The judge said the evidence may later show that these were not “front” companies and that “may prove fatal to the case at trial, or it may not.” But he said it wasn’t the purpose of the extradition hearing to decide whether the evidence would convict.

 

“The sufficiency of the evidence is a concern of the extradition judge,” he wrote. “Reliability is not.”

 

“At this juncture, it is sufficient if the evidence shows a connection between Mahan Air and the alleged front companies which is capable of supporting an inference that certain financial transactions were done for the benefit of Mahan Air using the other company,” he wrote.

Mahan Air is also sanctioned under Canada’s anti-terrorism regulations, which led to the Canada Border Services Agency detaining Sari when he arrived in Canada in 2019 because it had learned he was a principal employee of the airline, according to earlier court documents.

 

The agency said it learned hours later there was a U.S. warrant for charges of fraud and money laundering against Sari.

 

A judge last year denied Sari’s attempt to stop his extradition. He tried to argue his consular rights had been infringed upon following his arrest.

 

Justice Janet Winteringham agreed his rights were infringed upon and that violations in his detention hearings led to him spending six months in pretrial custody before being let out on bail with strict conditions, including electronic monitoring. But she said the violations in both instances weren’t serious enough to warrant a stay of extradition proceedings.

Javad Soleimani speaks at a memorial about his wife Elnaz Nabiyi, killed by an Iranian missile attack on a passenger plane. Julien Fournier / Global News

‘Safe haven’: Iranian Canadians urge Ottawa to weed out regime officials

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By Stewart Bell  Global News
Posted January 17, 2025 4:00 am
 3 min read

Canada must do more to avoid becoming a safe haven for members of Iran’s regime, Iranian Canadians warned in documents unsealed by the foreign interference commission Thursday.

Documents released by the Hogue Commission summarize public consultations held last year with the Iranian diaspora concerning foreign interference and what to do about it.

In particular, Iranian Canadians called for better screening to weed out regime officials who served in the government of the Islamic republic before arriving in this country.

“Certain attendees talked about the presence of Iranian government officials who were involved in criminal activities and human rights abuses in Canada,” the commission wrote.

 

Community members also told the inquiry that “Iranian Canadian community organizations have been infiltrated and taken over by persons acting on behalf of the Iranian regime.”

Global News revealed this week that despite Ottawa’s promise to expel top regime officials, the Canada Border Services Agency had deported only one of the 18 identified so far.

Canada “is known as a safe haven for Islamic regime officials and their families,” Tehran-born human rights activist Nazanin Afshin-Jam MacKay said in her presentation.

It was “very traumatizing” for Iranian Canadians to see officials from the Islamic regime in Canada, she said, recalling an incident that saw “Iranian nuclear officials” invited to the University of British Columbia.

She described “experiencing feelings of despair upon seeing the children of Iranian regime officials driving fancy cars around Vancouver,” and claimed realtors worked with officials “to park their money” in B.C.

Border agents need more awareness and training, and should use the public online database Faces of Crimes, which documents the abuses of regime officials in Iran, she said.

Another witness told the inquiry a former Iranian police chief was spotted in Richmond Hill, Ont., and a former Iranian cabinet minister “took a summer vacation in Montreal.”

The Iranian regime “wants to exert influence in Canada because there is a large and well-educated Iranian diaspora,” the witness, whose name was not released, told the inquiry.

Another witness suggested establishing a section within Canada’s immigration or foreign affairs departments to “scrutinize immigration applications from Iran.”

The Iranian regime is one of several that Canada has accused of targeting dissidents in the diaspora with threats and intimidation.

Recent assassination plots linked to Iran have targeted outspoken critics of the clerical regime, among them Irwin Cotler, a former Liberal MP.

“Iranian dissidents have been threatened in Canada and that their families in Iran have been contacted by Iranian officials,” according to a summary of a presentation by Javad Soleimani.

Soleimani’s wife was aboard a passenger plane shot down by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp (IRGC) in 2020. Fifty-five Canadian citizens and 30 permanent residents died in the missile attack.

Three months after the tragedy, Iran’s intelligence service contacted him and told him to remove a social media post they did not like, he said.

When he refused, he said they threatened his family still in Iran.

IRGC members “freely work and study here in Canada,” Soleimani said, adding Iran “has been actively promoting its agenda through mosques and community groups” that should be investigated.

The Canadian government announced in November 2022 that it had banned senior regime officials from the country in response to Tehran’s suppression of women’s rights demonstrations.

Since then, a dozen-and-a-half suspected top regime members have so far been identified by immigration enforcement investigators, but only three deportation hearings have been completed.

Two of those ended with deportation orders, but only one of them has actually been removed from Canada. In the third case, the Immigration and Refugee Board refused to approve the deportation.

Meanwhile, a deportation hearing was to begin next month for Amin Yousefijam, an Iranian who helped the Islamic republic dodge sanctions, and then changed his name to Ameen Cohen after he was convicted.

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Liberal MP Patrick Weiler speaks in the House of Commons about Canada’s ban on senior Iranian regime officials, April 15, 2024. House of Commons

Latest accused Iran official caught in Canada sues immigration department

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By Stewart Bell & Nathaniel Dove  Global News
Posted January 30, 2025 4:00 am
 7 min read

The latest suspected senior Iranian official caught in Canada sued the immigration department and enlisted a Liberal MP’s office as part of her fight to stay in the country, government records show.

After arriving in Canada as a tourist, Elham Zandi applied for a work permit, and when officials investigated her past, she complained to the courts about the delay and sought $10,000 in damages.

Her immigration file also reveals the office of Liberal MP Patrick Weiler contacted Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada no less than five times about her case.

Now the Canada Border Services Agency is accusing Zandi of being a senior member of Iran’s repressive regime and has launched deportation proceedings against her, Global News has learned.

Zandi’s lawyer declined to comment. The CBSA said it could not discuss the matter for privacy reasons. But the Immigration and Refugee Board said it was scheduling a deportation hearing for Zandi.

The CBSA requested the hearing on Jan. 7 under regulations that target high-ranking officials who have served in the government of the Islamic Republic, the IRB said.

No date has been set for the proceedings.

Details of Zandi’s alleged role in the Iranian regime have not yet been disclosed but a court case she filed against the government last year reveals her efforts to remain in Canada.

 

Although Iran is accused of widespread human rights abuses and sponsoring terrorist groups Hamas, Hezbollah and Yemen’s Houthis, its senior officials have been turning up in Canada.

The CBSA has identified 18 alleged officials living across the country. Three have had hearings so far. The IRB issued deportation orders against two of them but declined to expel the third.

A fourth official left Canada voluntarily. Another six cases are still before the IRB. Immigration authorities also cancelled 84 visas as part of the crackdown, the CBSA said.

But Iranian Canadian activists want the federal government to do better job of screening out regime members who they say are treating the country as a safe haven.

In her report on foreign interference released Tuesday, Commissioner Marie-Josée Hogue wrote that community members had told her Iranian officials “live openly and freely in Canada.”

“The senior officials are coming here because they don’t want to live under the conditions that they have created in Iran,” said Kaveh Shahrooz, a Toronto lawyer and senior fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute.

“But they’re choosing Canada because frankly it’s easy to get in here.”

He said the lapse has left Iranian Canadians fearful and frustrated at the unfairness of an immigration system that refuses visas to their family members but lets in regime officials.

“It just points to a system that is not functioning as we’ve been promised by our politicians.”

He called for clearer guidance for immigration officers conducting security screening of Iranians seeking to come to Canada, and more resources for the deportation process.

Under rules announced in November 2022, Iran’s senior officials were barred from Canada. The policy was a response to Tehran’s suppression of Woman, Life, Freedom movement protesters.

However, according to immigration documents released to Global News by the Federal Court, Zandi was able to enter Canada for “tourism” and then apply to stay on as a temporary resident worker.

Her application was made on Nov. 7, 2023 under the Iran public policy, which is meant for those who “feel uncomfortable returning to Iran” as a result of the regime’s killing and mass arrests of women’s rights activists.

Two months later, either Zandi or a representative acting on her behalf, “commenced a series of status enquiries with the office of Patrick Weiler, a Member of the House of Commons Canada,” according to immigration records.

A staff member in Weiler’s office began asking in January 2024 about the progress of Zandi’s immigration case and followed up in February, March, July and September, according to the immigration documents.

During that time, Weiler defended the government’s record on Iran in the House of Commons, reminding MPs about the 2022 decision to ban top Iranian officials from Canada.

“As a result, senior officials of the regime are now permanently inadmissible to Canada,” he said during an April 15, 2024 debate about whether to add the IRGC to Canada’s list of terror groups.

“This includes tens of thousands of Iranians, such as the head of state, senior IRGC members, intelligence operatives, senior government officials, diplomats and judges,” he said.

He called the government’s measures against Iran “some of the strongest in the world,” but raised questions about outlawing the IRGC, saying doing so could impact thousands of Canadians who had been conscripted into the Iranian militia.

The office of the MP, who represents the West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky Country riding, said Zandi’s daughter was a constituent and had asked for updates on her mother’s work permit application.

As a result, one of Weiler’s staff spoke to IRCC’s Ministerial Centre for Members of Parliament and Senators five times and relayed the responses to Zandi’s daughter, his office said in a statement.

Located in Montreal, MCMPS is the IRCC office set up to handle calls from MPs asking about the immigration cases of their constituents. Each query by an MP is noted in an applicant’s immigration file.

“The only person whom our office was in contact with was her daughter who requested case updates on her mother’s behalf, a service MP offices provide to all constituents,” the statement said.

The MP’s office said it was not aware of the details of Zandi’s security screening and welcomed the removal of anyone found inadmissible under the 2o22 Iran policy.

“We would like to emphasize as well that MP offices are not privy to, nor are we able to action in any way the security assessments for immigration cases,” the statement said.

“The job of constituency office caseworkers is to provide status updates on cases requested by constituents, nothing more.”

It is not the first time an MP’s office has been linked to the case of an Iranian under scrutiny for possible links to the regime.

According to court records, the office of Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre asked for updates on Eshagh Ghalibaf in 2021.

The son of Iran’s parliamentary speaker, Ghalibaf had applied to immigrate to Canada and, like Zandi, launched a court case against Canada alleging his security screening was taking too long.

Immigration Minister Marc Miller said last February the government had refused the permanent residency application of Ghalibaf, whose father was also once a senior IRGC commander.

Six months after Zandi asked for a work permit, her Saskatoon-based lawyer, Oluwadamilola Asuni, sent IRCC a letter that complained of an “unreasonable and inordinate delay” and “demanded” a decision by June 14.

On Aug. 5, Zandi filed a case in the Federal Court that asked a judge to order the immigration department to make a decision on her application within five days.

The delay in processing her case was “unacceptable” and a breach of her “legitimate expectation,” said her court application, which sought reimbursement for her legal costs and another $10,000 in damages.

She also argued she had already been screened before she came to Canada.

The government responded in a written submission that “security screening remains in progress” and her court case should be dismissed since no decision had yet been made about her work permit.

But last week, the IRB said the CBSA had asked for a deportation hearing for Zandi under a section of immigration law that bans prescribed senior officials in the service of a government engaged in terrorism and gross rights abuses.

The hearing will be held in public, the IRB said.

Along with China and India, the Iranian regime is one of a handful of foreign governments Canada has accused of targeting the diaspora with threats and intimidation.

According to intelligence documents tabled at the foreign interference commission, Tehran monitors Iranian dissidents and women’s rights activists in Canada to silence criticism of the regime.

Meanwhile, Canada-based crime networks have helped Iran evade sanctions put in place to pressure the regime and curb its rights abuses and weapons and nuclear programs.

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Another senior member of Iran’s regime caught in Canada, CBSA says

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By Stewart Bell & Nathaniel Dove  Global News
Posted November 22, 2024 9:23 am
 3 min read
(The front page image retrieved from https://globalnews.ca/news/10597091/five-iran-regime-members-deported-from-canada/)

Another senior member of the Iranian regime has been found living in Canada, bringing the number to 16, according to immigration officials.

The Canada Border Services Agency also said it had sent one more of the alleged officials to the Immigration and Refugee Board for a deportation hearing.

Seven deportation hearings are now underway against suspected senior Iranian regime members, in addition to two that have already resulted in deportation orders.

The updated figures are as of Oct. 15.

“We have taken significant measures to crack down on the murderous Iranian regime’s impact in Canada and to hold it to account,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Friday when asked about the matter.

He said federal agencies were working to ensure Canada was “not harboring people who are out there to destabilize our economy and our country and hurt Canadian families.“

The Canadian government will not identify the regime members whose cases are still ongoing.

“As a matter of practice, the IRB does not provide information on any cases that are not public,” the Refugee Board said in a statement to Global News.

The cases are the result of a policy adopted in November 2022 that banned high-ranking Iranian government officials from Canada.

The measures were imposed in response to the death of Mahsa Amini, who was detained and killed by Iran’s morality police for showing her hair in public.

 

The killing set off demonstrations that were brutally suppressed by the clerical-run regime of Supreme Leader Ali Khomenei.

Canada responded by designating the Iranian government a regime engaged in “terrorism and systematic and gross human rights violations.”

The policy effectively barred tens of thousands of Iranian officials and Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps members from Canada.

The Iranian regime and IRGC are leading a so-called “axis of resistance” that has been promoting violence and instability in the Middle East.

Iran is the main sponsor of Hamas, which set off a regional conflict by attacking Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Tehran also back Hezbollah and Yemen’s Houthis.

The Islamic Republic has also been linked to several recent plots to assassinate dissidents and critics, among them former Liberal MP Irwin Cotler.

Global News revealed that deportation orders were issued this year against two officials, Majid Iranmanesh and Sayed Salman Samani.

But only one of them has actually been deported so far and the remaining cases have proceeded in secrecy, after the IRB banned the press from the hearings.

 

Meanwhile, an Iranian citizen convicted of helping Tehran evade sanctions appeared Wednesday before the IRB, where he is undergoing deportation proceedings.

Amin Yousefijam, also known as Amen Cohen, was convicted in the U.S. of shipping sensitive materials to Iran in violation of sanctions.

The CBSA is now trying to deport him, alleging he undermined Canada’s efforts to contain the threat posed by the Iranian regime.

Although his deportation case was supposed to begin on Oct. 28, it was delayed when his lawyers quit, citing a “breakdown” in the solicitor-client relationship.

At an appearance this week, the IRB delayed the hearing again until Feb. 25, in order to give Yousefijam’s new lawyer time to prepare.

 

Yousefijam contributed to “an increased security threat towards Canada in regards to terrorism and attack by nuclear weapons,” CBSA wrote in its report.

His brother Arash Yousefijam was also convicted. The brothers used Ontario’s name change system to adopt new identities as Ameen and Dr. Arash Cohen.

The Ontario government said it was looking into reforming its policies to prevent serious criminals from hiding their past identities.

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https://globalnews.ca/news/10881474/senior-iran-regime-official-caught-in-canada-cbsa/

Former justice minister Irwin Cotler says RCMP told him Iranian plot to kill him was foiled

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CBC News

Cotler says he has been protected by RCMP day and night for more than a year

Christian Noel, Peter Zimonjic · CBC News

The RCMP has told former justice minister Irwin Cotler that a plot by agents of Iran to assassinate him was foiled.

As first reported by the Globe and Mail, the 84-year-old former Liberal MP was informed last month that a plot to assassinate him within 48 hours had been discovered.

Cotler, a human-rights advocate and an outspoken critic of the regime in Tehran, confirmed the Globe and Mail report and told Radio-Canada on Monday that he has been under police protection for over a year.

That protection, Cotler said, remains in place 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and involves the use of an armoured car, armed protection officers and other security measures.

The Globe and Mail reported the threat level faced by Cotler had been reduced; Cotler himself could not confirm that part of the report. It's also not known whether suspects have been arrested or have fled the country. 

The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) issued a statement on X thanking police for thwarting the assassination plot.

"This should be a wake-up call for anyone who doesn't believe defenders of Israel and human rights are under threat worldwide," the statement said.

Earlier this month, Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi denied U.S. claims that Tehran was linked to an alleged plot to kill Donald Trump.

Washington said Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards engaged in a murder-for-hire plot to kill Trump. U.S. authorities charged a man connected to the plot before the U.S. election.

Investigators said they learned of the plot from Farhad Shakeri, an alleged Iranian government asset who authorities say maintains a web of criminal associates enlisted by Tehran for surveillance and murder-for-hire plots.

U.S. linked two Canadians to previous murder plot

In January, the U.S. Department of Justice unsealed an indictment alleging two Canadians planned to conduct assassinations in the U.S. on behalf of Iran's Intelligence services.

The indictment identifies one Canadian suspect as Damion Patrick John Ryan, a full-patch member of the Hells Angels criminal gang who is accused of assembling a team of gunmen in late 2020 and early 2021. 

Ryan allegedly was working with another Canadian, Adam Richard Pearson, who was living illegally in Minnesota at the time.

U.S. authorities say the men were hired by an accused Iranian drug dealer who operates on the instructions of a certain officer with Iran's Ministry of Intelligence and Security.

The men are accused of plotting to shoot a man and woman living in Maryland, one of them a defector from Iran.

According to the indictment, Pearson promised that he would recruit people and tell them to shoot the victims repeatedly in the head in order to make an example of them.

 
https://www.iranintl.com/en/202309061354

Iran: ‘Atrocity crimes’ must be investigated and perpetrators prosecuted, says Special Rapporteur

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 The direct link to the report can be found here: https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/countries/iran/20240717-SR-Iran-Findings.pdf

 Picture Credit: Iran International

 

GENEVA – A UN Special Rapporteur said an international mechanism is essential to investigate and prosecute those responsible for “atrocity crimes” in Iran, including the extra-judicial killing of thousands of arbitrarily arrested prisoners during a crackdown by authorities on political dissent during the 1980s.

Javaid Rehman, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran – in final findings before his mandate ends on 31 July – said that the “atrocity crimes” of summary, arbitrary and extra-judicial executions during 1981-1982 and in 1988 amounted to crimes against humanity of murder and extermination, as well as genocide. The executions included women – some reportedly raped before being executed – and many children. Crimes against humanity also included imprisonment, torture and enforced disappearances.

“The Bahá’ís were targeted with genocidal intent and persecution, targeting and victimising of religious, ethnic and linguistic minorities and political opponents continued with complete impunity during, and since, the first decade of the establishment of the Islamic Republic in 1979,” Rehman said.

Among findings contained in this final paper, the Special Rapporteur said the investigative and accountability mechanism should conduct impartial and transparent investigations under international law and preserve evidence with the aim of further criminal prosecutions. “The continued concealment of the fate of thousands of political opponents and the whereabouts of their remains amounts to the crime against humanity of enforced disappearance,” Rehman said.

“I have observed the failure to ensure justice and accountability in Iran and how this is impacting the families of the victims and the current human rights situation in the country.”

The Iranian government continues to deny the “atrocity crimes”, perpetrators have not been brought to justice.

“I repeat, there should be no impunity for such gross human rights violations, regardless of when they were committed. The Iranian regime and its leaders should not be allowed to escape the consequences of their crimes against humanity and genocide. An independent international investigative and accountability mechanism for Iran is absolutely essential,” Rehman said.

The Special Rapporteur has been in contact with the Islamic Republic of Iran on this matter.

* The expert: Javaid Rehman, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The Special Rapporteurs and Working Groups are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name of the Council's independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms that address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world. Special Procedures' experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. They are independent from any government or organization and serve in their individual capacity.

UN Human Rights, Country Page — Iran

For more information and media requests, please contact: Amal Loubani (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)

For media inquiries related to other UN independent experts, please contact Dharisha Indraguptha (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) or John Newland (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)

Follow news related to the UN's independent human rights experts on Twitter @UN_SPExperts

 

https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2024/07/iran-atrocity-crimes-must-be-investigated-and-perpetrators-prosecuted-says

CDI Invites the Former UN Special Rapporteur Javaid Rehman to Toronto

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New president won't improve Iran's human rights situation: UN rapporteur

UN Special Rapporteur Javaid Rehman says due to systemic issues within Iran's judicial system, a change in presidency is unlikely to improve the country's human rights situation.

"There are certain systemic issues in Iran starting from 1979 (Revolution). The system is very repressive, intolerant, and non-accepting of democratic values," Rehman said in an interview with Iran International's Mahsa Mortazavi in Toronto, Canada.

He pointed out that the constitutional framework concentrates all powers with the Supreme Leader, creating an absence of an independent judiciary where people's rights can be respected. "There is a need for reform in the constitutional framework," he said, emphasizing that the people need to be recognized with the right to democratic governance, which has been absent for the last 45 years.

Rehman, who will leave his post in July, discussed his findings publicly for the first time outside the UN in Toronto, Canada, after being unable to travel to Iran to investigate human rights in Iran during his six-year tenure. The Iranian government, which dismisses all accusations regarding human rights violations, has not permitted UN special rapporteurs to visit the country and conduct investigations.

In response to Iran International’s question about how he could investigate Iran’s human rights issues without traveling to Iran, Rehman explained that he had held many meetings with the Iranian diaspora and individuals who had first-hand experiences of human rights violations, allowing him to collect substantial evidence.

"We certainly work on the basis of dialogue and human rights discourse and the improvement of the human rights situation," Rehman said.

Rehman also noted that the regime has not allowed any space for civil society to grow, repressing even non-governmental organizations like the Imam Ali organization. "The system needs substantial changes for it to accept democracy, rule of law, and the rights of the people," he asserted.

Previously, Rehman had labeled Iran's mass executions of political prisoners in 1988 as "genocide" and "crimes against humanity." In June, during a UN Human Rights Council session in Geneva, he unveiled a detailed report showing systemic state-sponsored atrocities during a brutal crackdown on dissent. His investigation revealed that thousands of political prisoners, including Baha'is, Kurds, and members of groups like the MEK, were executed in the 1980s, particularly in the summer of 1988, following a fatwa issued by Iran's then-leader, Ruhollah Khomeini, and approved by a four-member death committee.

Rehman said he chose Toronto as his destination due to its significant Iranian diaspora community. He said he wanted to meet people closely connected to Iranian communities within Iran. "It is important for them to understand the perspective of the Special Rapporteur and the challenges I face in my work, including the lack of access to the country, which Iran has unfairly denied me for the past six years," he explained. "Toronto offers a great opportunity to learn more from a community closely following developments in Iran," he added.

Rehman’s comprehensive reports, along with a detailed 400-page report from the Fact-Finding Mission on Iran, have paved the way for international tribunals and greater use of existing international jurisdiction to prosecute those responsible. The focus remains on collecting evidence that can withstand scrutiny in court. Rehman's latest report will be published on his website later this month.

https://www.iranintl.com/en/202407063985

CDI invited Javaid Rehman to Toronto to present his detailed report among the Iranian-Canadian community.

Photo credit: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/tensions-rise-toronto-persian-community-1.6650425

5 more alleged senior members of Iranian regime face deportation from Canada

IRGC
By Stewart Bell  Global News
Posted July 2, 2024 6:00 am
 4 min read

Immigration officials have launched deportation proceedings against five more suspected members of the Iranian regime found in Canada, according to newly released figures.

The Canada Border Services Agency has alleged they held senior positions in Iran’s repressive government and has asked the Immigration and Refugee Board to hold hearings.

They face removal from Canada under sanctions adopted in 2022 that ban tens of thousands of top Iranian officials, including Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp (IRGC) members, from the country.

The sanctions were enacted after Iran’s morality police arrested Mahsa Amini for showing her hair in public and killed her while she was in custody, setting off protests that were brutally suppressed.

Since then, the policy has been used to order the deportation of two Iranian officials, Majid Iranmanesh, a science advisor, and Seyed Salman Samani, who was deputy interior minister.

But unlike those cases, which were held in public, hearings for the subsequent five are being conducted behind closed doors and the government has not released their names.

Deportation hearings are supposed to occur in public, unless the person concerned has made a refugee claim. Global News has applied to open the proceedings to the press.

 

“Canada has, for too long, been a safe haven for people with ties to Iran’s regime. So I’m glad the government is increasingly taking action against them,” said lawyer and human rights activist Kaveh Shahrooz.

“But I wish the government would be more transparent about who these figures are and how they got into the country in the first place.”

The CBSA said deportation hearings “are generally open to the public, unless the IRB decides to or is required to conduct the proceeding in private.”

“Canada stands with the people of Iran, who continue to fight for their rights. The government of Canada has taken action to stop senior members of the Iranian regime from seeking or finding safe haven in Canada,” said spokesperson Luke Reimer.

Breaking news from Canada and around the world sent to your email, as it happens.

The agency declined to comment on the cases, citing the Privacy Act.


Canada lists Iran’s IRGC as terrorist group

Canada broke off diplomatic ties with Iran in 2012. In 2020, the IRGC shot down a passenger plane departing Tehran airport, killing 55 Canadian citizens and 30 permanent residents.

The IRGC also arms, funds and trains Hamas, the terror group that killed 1,200 Israelis and kidnapped more than 200 on Oct. 7. More recently, Iran has supplied drones to Russia for attacks on Ukraine.

Canada designated Iran “a regime that has engaged in terrorism and systematic and gross human rights violations” in November 2022, making holding senior posts in the the Islamic republic inadmissible to Canada.

On June 19, the government placed the IRGC on its list of terrorist entities, alleging it “knowingly carried out terrorist acts” and “acted in association” with Hamas, Hezbollah and Islamic Jihad.

Iran is also among the countries the government has said was engaged in foreign interference targeting dissidents and critics, and Iranian-Canadians have long complained that Iranian regime officials were entering Canada.

According to figures released on June 3, the Canada Border Services Agency has launched 87 investigations into suspected senior Iranian regime members living in the country.

Forty-three investigations have been closed because the individuals in question were either not in Canada or deemed not to be senior Iranian officials, the CBSA said.

 

Canada officially designates Iran’s IRGC as a terrorist entity

So far, immigration officials have identified 14 “well-founded” cases of senior regime members, seven of which have now been sent to the IRB for hearings. Aside from the two cases that have been completed, five are now listed as “ongoing.”

The IRB declined to provide any information about them, but did not explain why the cases were proceeding in secrecy.

“As a matter of practice, the IRB does not provide information on any cases that are not public,” said spokesperson Anna Pape.

“We can confirm that, at this time, the IRB has received a total of two such cases which proceeded in public: Mr. Iranmanesh and Mr. Samani.”

“We have no other cases related to the Iran regime … that are proceeding in public at this time, and cannot comment on whether or not we have any non-public ones.”

Iran’s president, foreign minister dead in helicopter crash, state TV reports
 

Iran is currently holding elections following the death of president Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash on May 19. Following an initial vote, a run-off is set for July 5.

Among those knocked out in the first round of voting was Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran’s parliamentary speaker and a former senior commander in the IRGC.

Court documents obtained by Global News show that his son, Eshagh Ghalibaf, applied to immigrate to Canada. He then launched a court case against Canada, alleging his security screening was taking too long.

In a Feb. 21 social media post, Immigration Minister Marc Miller said the government had refused his permanent residency application on Feb. 6. “The Iranian regime has engaged in acts of terrorism and systemic human rights violations.”

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

 

Photo credit of the home page: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/tensions-rise-toronto-persian-community-1.6650425

People take part in a march/rally Saturday, April 29, 2023 in Montreal against the Iranian regime. (John Kenney / MONTREAL GAZETTE )

Government of Canada lists the IRGC as a terrorist entity

IRGC

Government of Canada lists the IRGC as a terrorist entity

From: Public Safety Canada

Photo Credit: People take part in a march/rally Saturday, April 29, 2023 in Montreal against the Iranian regime. (John Kenney / MONTREAL GAZETTE )

News release

June 19, 2024

Ottawa, Ontario

Today, the Honourable Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Public Safety, Democratic Institutions and Intergovernmental Affairs, announced that the Government of Canada has listed the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist entity under the Criminal Code, effective today.

Based on their actions, there are reasonable grounds to believe that the IRGC has knowingly carried out, attempted to carry out, participated in or facilitated a terrorist activity, or has knowingly acted on behalf of, at the direction of, or in association with an entity that has knowingly carried out terrorist activity. Listing the IRGC means that they are a terrorist group.

The decision to list the IRGC through the Criminal Code listing regime sends a strong message that Canada will use all tools at its disposal to combat the terrorist activity of the IRGC, conducted both unilaterally and in knowing association with listed terrorist entities such as Hizballah and Hamas.

As a now-listed entity, the IRGC meets the definition of a “terrorist group” under Canada’s Criminal Code. As an immediate consequence of this listing, Canadian financial institutions, such as banks and brokerages, are required to immediately freeze the property of a listed entity. It is a criminal offence for anyone in Canada and Canadians abroad to knowingly deal with property owned or controlled by a terrorist group.

Listing can also assist Canadian security, intelligence and law enforcement agencies to combat terrorism, including by helping to facilitate the laying of terrorism charges against perpetrators and supporters of terrorism. The terrorist listings mechanism plays a key role in countering terrorist financing. A listing can also help block sympathizers in Canada from providing assistance to terrorist groups.

Today’s listing builds on Canada’s previous actions, which were already some of the strongest in the world against the Iranian regime, including:

  • The Government of Canada has listed several terrorist entities that have benefited from the IRGC’s patronage and that have helped advance Iran’s interests and foreign policy. These include Hizballah, Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and the Taliban. Furthermore, in June 2019, Canada added three new Iran-backed groups to the Criminal Code terrorist list: the Al-Ashtar Brigades, Harakat al-Sabireen, and the Fatemiyoun Division.
  • In November 2022, Canada designated the Islamic Republic of Iran as a regime that has engaged in terrorism and systematic or gross human rights violations. As a result, under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, thousands of senior Iranian government officials, including top IRGC members, are inadmissible to Canada. In addition to being banned from entering the country, current and former senior Iranian government officials who are in Canada may be investigated and removed.
  • Since October 2022, Canada has imposed 18 rounds of sanctions under the Special Economic Measures (Iran) Regulations and the Justice for Victims of Corrupt Foreign Officials Act (JVCFOA) to target individuals and entities involved in gross and systematic violations of human rights and threats to international peace and security. A total of 200 Iranian individuals and 250 Iranian entities are listed under Special Economic Measures Act (SEMA) and the JVCFOA. These measures effectively freeze any assets the listed individuals and entities may hold in Canada.

The Government of Canada will continue to fight terrorist threats to Canada, people in Canada and its interests around the world.

Quotes

“The Iranian regime has consistently displayed a complete disregard for human rights, both inside and outside Iran, as well as a willingness to destabilize the international rules-based order. Listing the IRGC builds on the Government of Canada’s broader efforts to ensure that there is no impunity for Iran’s unlawful actions and its support of terrorism. Our government will always promote human rights and take action against those seeking to disrupt our way of life, here in Canada and around the world.”

-       The Honourable Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Minister of Public Safety, Democratic Institutions and Intergovernmental Affairs

Quick facts

  • There are several offences in the Criminal Code that address conduct in connection with terrorist groups. For example, the Criminal Code prohibits dealing in any property (including money) owned or controlled by terrorist groups or to provide any financial services (such as services offered by banks and money services business) for the benefit of or at the direction of a terrorist group.

  • With this addition, there are now 77 terrorist entities listed under the Criminal Code

  • To ensure the list of terrorist entities remains up-to-date, a comprehensive review of each entity occurs within five years from June 21, 2019 if listed before that date or if listed on or after June 21,2019, within five years of the date of its being listed to determine whether it should remain on the list, and subsequently within every five years of the most recent recommendation to list with respect to each listed entity. Following the Government’s recent review, it has assessed 47 entities to determine whether they should remain on the list. It was concluded that the Groupe islamique armé (GIA) should be delisted as it is now defunct. The other 46 entities, including the IRGC’s Qods Force, continue to meet the threshold for listing.

Associated links

Contacts

Jean-Sébastien Comeau
Deputy Director of Communications
Office of the Honourable Dominic LeBlanc
Minister of Public Safety, Democratic Institutions and Intergovernmental Affairs
343-574-8116
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Media Relations
Public Safety Canada
613 991-0657
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