Toronto/CMEDIA: Following reportedly US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand says she’s deeply concerned about foreign interference by Iran’s regime and the possibility of Tehran activating terrorist sleeper cells on Canadian soil.
Liberal justice minister Irwin Cotler, a human-rights advocate, revealed last year he was under police protection for his own safety from fear of a plot by agents of Iran’s regime to assassinate him.
FBI officials In the US are on high alert for Iranian sleeper cells made up of terrorists or spies who often go undetected, living normal lives in Western countries until they are called on for service.
Ahead of his Saturday strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, Iran sent private messages to the U.S. President Donald Trump warning that they would respond with terrorist attacks in the U.S. carried out by sleeper cells in the country.
A national terrorism advisory was issued on Sunday by the Department of Homeland Security telling the public that in case of Iran’s leadership’s call for retaliation increases the likelihood that violent extremists could independently mobilize to commit violence.
When asked about the government’s actions to protect Canadians from any potential Iranian terrorism, Anand said Canada listed Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organization last year and cut diplomatic ties over a decade ago.
“We will continue to take any possibility of foreign interference extremely seriously, and that is underscored by the work that we will advocate for here at NATO, as well as the work that we were doing at the G7,” Anand said.
Anand also said she had an “unprecedented call,” — the first call of its kind since François-Philippe Champagne did so years ago — with her Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi on Saturday before the U.S. airstrikes.
While seaking with her Iranian counterpart to help ensure Canadians’ safety in Iran, Anand said Canada has not had diplomatic relations with Iran since 2012.
On that call, Anand urged Iran to allow Canadians to leave the country safely, de-escalate the conflict with Israel and return to the negotiating table.
She fears that more senior Iranian officials will flee Iran because of the conflict with Israel and seek safe haven in Canada.
“My concern is as the regime weakens, they are going to use Canada as their future home more and more,” she said. “This has already happened. It’s going to accelerate.”
The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) says it has cancelled the visas of more than 130 suspected senior Iranian regime members trying to come to Canada since the 2022 designation.
