PM says government moving to block members of Iranian regime, IRGC from entering Canada

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says his government is taking steps to prevent top members of the Iranian regime — including members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) — from entering Canada.

Trudeau said the move would affect the top 50 per cent of the IRGC — roughly 10,000 members — and will be permanent.

"We are using the most powerful tools at our disposal to crack down on this brutal regime," Trudeau told a press conference Friday.

The move comes after weeks of pressure on the government from opposition MPs and advocates to add the IRGC to Canada's terrorist list.

What the government announced falls short of listing the IRGC as a terrorist entity under the Criminal Code. Instead, the government is using provisions under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA) to target members of the regime and the IRGC.

Members of Parliament passed a motion in 2018 calling on the government to designate the IRGC as a terrorist organization. Four years later, it still hasn't done so — although the guard's paramilitary Quds Force is already on the list.

WATCH | Trudeau announces $76M for sanctions:

Earlier this week, the government slapped sanctions on 34 Iranians and Iranian entities, including members of the IRGC and Iran's morality police.

Trudeau said Friday the government will be expanding those sanctions and will allocate $76 million to boost the government's capacity to seize and freeze the assets of sanctioned entities and establish a new sanctions bureau at Global Affairs Canada.

The Conservative opposition has been amping up the pressure on the government to add the IRGC to the list in recent weeks. Conservative MPs have brought up the topic up in nearly every question period since Parliament returned last month.

The Association of Families of Flight PS752 Victims also has calling on Ottawa to add the IRGC to the list of terrorist organizations in response to its role in destroying the civilian aircraft two years ago.

Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland insisted Friday that by taking the steps it has taken, the federal government is recognizing the IRGC as a terrorist entity.

"The IRGC is a terrorist organization. Today, by listing the IRGC under IRPA and indeed by listing the broader leadership of the Iranian regime, we are formally recognizing that fact and acting accordingly," she said.

When asked why the government didn't actually add the IRGC to the list of terrorist entities under the Criminal Code, Trudeau didn't rule out doing so in the future.