Canada expands sanctions on Iranian entities and officials over internet controls

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Canada expands Iran sanctions

Highlights

Canada added five Iranian entities and five individuals to its sanctions list, targeting groups like the Iranian Audiovisual Media Regulatory Authority and Douran Group.
The latest amendments bring the total to 237 Iranian individuals and 265 entities sanctioned under varying Special Economic Measures from Ottawa, expanding measures to broader government officials.
Canada cites ongoing Iranian internet and communication restrictions, referencing extensive shutdowns during the Woman, Life, Freedom movement and December 2025 protests, as rationale for strengthened sanctions.

New listings under Iran sanctions regime

As reported by Global Affairs Canada, the new sanctions add five entities and five individuals to Canada's Iran measures, including the Iranian Audiovisual Media Regulatory Authority, the Working Group for Determining Instances of Criminal Content, Douran Group, Yaftar Pazhohan Pishtaz Rayanesh Limited Company and Seraj Cyberspace Organization.

The newly listed individuals are Davoud Moazami Goudarzi, Eskandar Momeni, Rasoul Jalili, Mohsen Fathizadeh and Ruhollah Momen Nasab. Canada says the sanctions are intended to maintain pressure on the Iranian regime for continued human rights violations, including restrictions imposed both online and offline.

Canada amended the Special Economic Measures (Iran) Regulations in October 2022 to allow sanctions against Iranian individuals and entities responsible for gross and systematic human rights violations. In March 2025, Ottawa further expanded the rules so current and former senior Iranian government officials beyond senior officials of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps can also be designated.

Broader pressure on rights and communications controls

Ottawa says Iran has for years restricted internet connectivity and mobile services to control information flows, conceal alleged human rights abuses and hinder protest organization. It says those tools were used extensively during the Woman, Life, Freedom movement that began in September 2022 and again during mass protests that began in December 2025, when a nationwide internet shutdown lasted about three weeks.

With the latest amendments, Canada now lists 237 Iranian individuals and 265 Iranian entities under the Special Economic Measures (Iran) Regulations, Special Economic Measures (Hamas Terrorist Attacks) Regulations, Special Economic Measures (Russia) Regulations and the Justice for Victims of Corrupt Foreign Officials Act. The move adds to Western sanctions pressure on Iranian state-linked institutions tied to censorship, surveillance and domestic security controls.

In our earlier article on Iran’s shrinking international air access under escalating U.S. sanctions pressure, we examined how neighbouring countries and carriers were halting or reassessing flight links amid warnings that Iranian airlines could face wider shutdown risks. We also described the operational strain on Iran’s aviation sector and the knock-on effects for regional travel, trade, and business ties as sanctions exposure grows.

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