Canada Sanctions Iranian Judges Over Alleged Human Rights Abuses

June 19, 2023

Protesters sentenced to death for allegedly killing members of security forces during protests after Mahsa Amini's death, in Isfahan — FILE PHOTO: A judge sits in a courtroom in front of Saeid Yaghoubi, who is to be executed by hanging, along with Majid Kazemi and Saleh Mirhashemi, for participating in nationwide protests in Iran that followed the death of 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian woman Mahsa Amini, in Isfahan, Iran, January 9, 2023.

June 19 (Reuters) – The Canadian government on Monday said it sanctioned Iranian judges over alleged human rights abuses, adding that the step would prohibit dealings with them and freeze any assets they may have held in Canada.

“Today’s sanctions list 7 individuals for their role in gross and systematic human rights violations in Iran‘s criminal justice system, notably Iran‘s Revolutionary Courts,” the Canadian government said in a statement.

Canada said the judges and their courts had issued “notorious” death sentences and harsh prison terms following “sham trials and based on evidence gathered under torture.”