Madam Speaker, before beginning my remarks, I would like to acknowledge that today is the one-year anniversary of the terrorist organization Hamas's launching a horrifying attack against Israel. Our government stands with Jewish people and Israelis on this painful anniversary, and we will not relent until every last hostage is returned home.
As the member opposite knows, on June 19, our government listed the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, IRGC, as a terrorist entity under the Criminal Code. 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. The decision to list 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 Hezbollah 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 the 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. As my hon. colleague knows, listing the IRGC is one of the tools the government has used to limit the threat posed by the Iranian regime and to call out its undermining of peace and stability in the region.
We have been and remain resolute in our determination to hold the Iranian regime accountable for its support of terrorism and systemic human rights abuses. The government holds Iran accountable for its actions with a wide suite of additional tools, including listing key entities and proxy actors in Iran's so-called “Axis of Resistance” under the Criminal Code terrorist-listing regime.
Since 2012, Canada has continuously upheld the listing of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps force as a terrorist entity. The force is Iran's primary tool for terrorist operations in providing arms, funding and paramilitary training to other terrorist groups, including the Taliban, Hezbollah, Hamas and the Palestine Islamic Jihad, as well as other destabilizing forces, like the Houthi, which continues to attack civilian ships in the Red Sea.
Again, Canada imposes various measures against Iran and its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. It has been and continues to be sanctioned under the Special Economic Measures Act, SEMA, which explicitly targets IRGC, its leadership, and several suborganizations, including the IRGC air force and air force missile command.
Since October 2022, Canada has imposed 17 rounds of SEMA sanctions targeting 155 individuals and 89 entities at all levels of Iran's security, intelligence and economic apparatus, including on April 24 listing Iran's minister of defence. All told, 446 Iranian individuals and entities have had their Canadian assets frozen under SEMA.
