Iran lists Canada’s navy as terrorist organization in response to move by Ottawa

Demonstrators hold a poster of the Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and an Iranian flag during an annual rally in front of the former U.S. Embassy in Tehran, celebrating the anniversary of the 1979 takeover of the embassy, Iran, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

OTTAWA — Tehran has designated Canada’s navy as a terrorist organization in response to Ottawa’s decision to add an Iranian military branch to its list of extremist groups.

In a statement, the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs says Canada’s 2024 listing of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist entity contravened international law.

The statement notes that a 2019 Iranian law, passed after the United States designated the IRGC as a terrorist organization, authorizes reciprocal action against countries that follow Washington’s lead.

It says Iran considers the Royal Canadian Navy to fall within the scope of this law and, as a result, labels it a terrorist organization.

The Department of National Defence referred an inquiry about the move to Global Affairs Canada, but Global Affairs did not immediately comment.

Canada says Iran has a long history of denying its citizens their human rights and fundamental freedoms, and maintains that Tehran’s actions have seriously threatened global peace and security.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 30, 2025

Jim Bronskill, The Canadian Press