Iran Takes Canada to UN Court Over Civil Damages Claims

Facts

• Iran filed a case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) Wednesday against Canada, accusing it of violating the Islamic nation's state immunity by allowing its citizens to sue Tehran for alleged terrorist acts.¹
• In an official filing, Iran said that Canada is “obliged to respect the jurisdictional immunity which Iran enjoys under international law" and shouldn't allow civil claims against Iran "for alleged support to, or acts of, terrorism.”²
• Iran demanded that Canada compensate Tehran for the “violation of its international obligations” and asked the ICJ to tell Ottawa to overrule any judgments against Iran in Canadian courts. Canada didn't immediately react to the filing.³
• Canada listed Iran as a state sponsor of terror in 2012 and broke diplomatic ties as tensions rose regarding Tehran’s support for the Syrian government during the country's civil war, Iran's nuclear program, and alleged threats to Israel. Foreign states are normally immune to Canadian civil claims.⁴
• In 2016, a Canadian judge ordered Iran's non-diplomatic land and bank accounts in Canada to be given to victims of attacks by Lebanese Hezbollah and Palestinian Hamas, both of which are Iranian-backed.³
• Last year, a Canadian court awarded $107M CAD ($84M) to the families of six people killed when Iranian forces shot down a Ukraine International Airlines flight near Tehran in January 2020 following the US' killing of top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani. Iran maintains the downing of the aircraft was an accident.⁵

Sources: ¹Reuters, ²ABC News, ³The National, ⁴Al Arabiya English, and ⁵Al Jazeera.

Narratives

• Anti-Iran narrative, as provided by Jerusalem Post. Iran is a rogue state that cannot be treated in the usual way by the international community. Besides supporting terror groups throughout the Middle East, Tehran also has been one of Russia's biggest supporters during Moscow's war on Ukraine. Western states have every right to hold Tehran accountable for its actions.
• Pro-Iran narrative, as provided by Tehran Times. Regardless of geopolitical considerations, Iran is a sovereign country and has certain rights within the international order. Neither Canada, nor any other state, should be allowed to violate Iran's sovereignty. Indeed, the West's aggression toward Iran only demonstrates its hypocrisy.