Minister 'concerned' about Iranian terrorist cells in Canada after U.S. airstrikes

Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand says she's profoundly acrophobic astir overseas interference by Iran's authorities and the anticipation of Tehran activating violent sleeper cells connected Canadian ungraded aft U.S. strikes connected Iranian atomic facilities. 

Anand was asked astir a Globe and Mail study quoting erstwhile Liberal justness curate Irwin Cotler, who warned Iran could usage these cells to perpetrate acts of unit successful Canada against critics of Iran's authorities similar himself. 

"In summation to Mr. Cotler's remarks, we are precise acrophobic astir overseas interference including the types that were highlighted by him," Anand told Canadian media portion successful the Hague for the NATO summit. 

"And we're precise acrophobic astir the Iranian regime, mostly speaking."

Cotler, a human-rights advocate, revealed past twelvemonth helium was under constabulary extortion for his ain safety. He said the RCMP told him it thwarted a crippled by agents of Iran's authorities to assassinate him. 

WATCH | What comes adjacent successful the war?: 

In the U.S., FBI officials are connected precocious alert for Iranian sleeper cells made up of terrorists oregon spies who often spell undetected, surviving mean lives successful Western countries until they are called connected for service, CBS News reported.

Iran sent private messages to the U.S. President Donald Trump up of his Saturday strikes connected Iranian atomic facilities informing that they would respond with violent attacks successful the U.S. carried retired by sleeper cells successful the country, NBC reported. 

The Department of Homeland Security issued a nationalist coercion advisory connected Sunday telling the nationalist that if Iran's enactment called for retaliation, the likelihood would increase that violent extremists could independently mobilize to perpetrate violence.

Terrorism menace level unchanged: Analyst

Former Canadian nationalist information expert Stephanie Carvin says Canadians shouldn't panic due to the fact that the coercion menace level hasn't changed successful Canada and Iran has signalled it wants to de-escalate. 

"I'm not definite what intent would beryllium served astatine this clip by conducting a convulsive extremist onslaught oregon immoderate benignant of sabotage campaign, if successful fact, they are looking for immoderate benignant of cessation of hostilities," said Carvin, who is an subordinate prof astatine Carleton University.

But Carvin says determination is interest successful the quality assemblage that menace actors affiliated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) could beryllium surviving successful Canada with immoderate benignant of screen communicative portion moving connected behalf of the Iranian authorities — oregon with the quality to bash so.

She warns these threat actors often aren't "sleeping," due to the fact that adjacent if they're not progressive successful an progressive plot, they're inactive often progressive successful threat-related activity. Those activities include money transfers, espionage, transnational repression, violent enactment oregon sabotage campaigns against targets successful Canada, she said.

"The thought that they're conscionable someway dormant I deliberation is precise wrong," she said. "These individuals are trained to prosecute successful galore activities."

'Unprecedented' call

When asked what enactment the government is taking to support Canadians from immoderate imaginable Iranian terrorism, Anand said Canada listed the IRGC as a violent enactment past twelvemonth and chopped diplomatic ties implicit a decennary ago.

"We volition proceed to instrumentality immoderate anticipation of overseas interference highly seriously, and that is underscored by the enactment that we volition advocator for present astatine NATO, arsenic good arsenic the enactment that we were doing astatine the G7," Anand said. 

Anand besides said she had an "unprecedented call" with her Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi on Saturday earlier the U.S. airstrikes. Her bureau believes it's the archetypal telephone of its benignant since François-Philippe Champagne did truthful years ago. He held the overseas affairs portfolio until January 2021.

WATCH | Anand shares topics discussed with Iran: 

On that call, Anand said she urged Iran to let Canadians to permission the state safely, de-escalate the struggle with Israel and instrumentality to the negotiating table. She besides reaffirmed that Canada is inactive seeking accountability for Iran's downing of Flight PS752 that killed 55 Canadians and 30 imperishable residents successful 2020, she said. 

Growing concerns astir Iran's authorities successful Canada 

Lawyer Kaveh Shahrooz says his interest implicit Iranian sleeper cells successful Canada is "certainly heightened now" and helium is "more alert than ever." 

He's besides a quality rights activistic who is captious of Iran's authorities and says he's reported threats and being monitored to Canadian authorities before. 

He's acrophobic Iran's authorities could effort to nonstop a connection to its critics overseas including successful Canada to fto them "know that it remains successful charge."

"Iran's authorities has been humiliated internationally," helium said. "It's been defeated militarily. And truthful I deliberation it's looking for antithetic ways of asserting its ain powerfulness and dominance to immoderate grade against the West."

WATCH | Trump declares ceasefire: 

Vancouver quality rights lawyer Mojdeh Shahriari is the co-founder of StopIRGC, a grassroots radical that tracks suspected Iranian authorities members successful Canada. She says they person passed connected much than 90 names to nationalist information agencies to analyse since 2022. 

She fears that much elder Iranian officials volition fly Iran due to the fact that of the struggle with Israel and question harmless haven successful Canada. She says determination are already hundreds of authorities affiliates and IRGC members she believes have settled successful Canada. She calls this a "slow-moving monster" that's lone going to velocity up.

"My interest is arsenic the authorities weakens, they are going to usage Canada arsenic their aboriginal location much and more," she said. "This has already happened. It's going to accelerate."

3 Iranian officials issued deportation letters

After years of unit to act, successful 2022 the national authorities designated the Islamic Republic of Iran arsenic a authorities that engaged successful coercion and systemic and gross quality rights violations nether the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. That designation made immoderate Iranian authorities members inadmissible to Canada.

The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) says it has cancelled the visas of much than 130 suspected elder Iranian authorities members trying to travel to Canada since the 2022 designation. 

WATCH | CSIS investigating alleged decease threats from Iran:

To date, retired of the 20 radical CBSA reported inadmissible to Canada for being a elder authoritative successful the Iranian regime, lone 1 has been removed from the country. Three radical successful full person been issued deportation letters aft Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada rulings.

Majid Iranmanesh was 1 of the elder Iranian officials fixed a deportation bid past year. A transcript of the Immigration and Refugee Board's proceeding said Iranmanesh was a director-general successful the vice-presidency of accusation and technology, conscionable a fewer levels distant from Iran's president. The committee concluded helium fell wrong the apical 50 per cent of the hierarchy of the Iranian regime, the transcript said.

The committee besides expelled Seyed Salman Samani, Iran's erstwhile lawman interior minister, from Canada, the Immigration Refugee Board says. 

Afshin Pirnoon, a erstwhile manager wide successful Iran's roads ministry, is besides facing an Immigration and Refugee Board hearing after the CBSA caught him surviving successful Canada and claimed he was a elder authoritative with Iran's regime. 

Six different cases are ongoing. CBSA would not supply the individuality of the individuals citing privateness concerns.