MEPs condemn alleged Iranian plot to assassinate ex-minister Irwin Cotler – National
The House of Commons on Monday condemned an alleged Iranian plot to assassinate the former Liberal justice minister. Irwin Cotler.
Members of the House unanimously supported a Bloc Québécois motion praising Cotler’s work in favor of human rights, recognizing his political contributions and condemning what he describes as death threats orchestrated by agents of a foreign regime.
The Globe and Mail first reported that the RCMP had warned Cotler on October 26 that there was an imminent threat of assassination within 48 hours, then later said the threat against him had been significantly reduced.
It indicates that Cotler, a vocal critic of the Iranian regime, has been under the protection of the RCMP since the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. Cotler’s office confirmed the Globe and Mail’s information to the Canadian Press.
Defense Minister Bill Blair told reporters Monday that Canada’s national security and law enforcement agencies are “doing an appropriate and necessary job to protect all Canadians, particularly parliamentarians and former parliamentarians.” “.
He said those agencies have requested “that we not comment on any particular investigation or effort they are undertaking.”
Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne pledged to give Cotler “all the protection that the Government of Canada can offer.”
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The RCMP declined to comment on the matter Monday. It said it based protection measures on threat and risk assessments, but did not confirm whether individuals were under protection or provide details of those measures.
Bloc MP Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe said in a statement to the House that Cotler “incurred the wrath of the Iranian regime” by calling for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to be listed as an entity terrorist. The government did so in June, after months of mounting political pressure.
Brunelle-Duceppe also condemned the “growing temptation of foreign powers to commit political assassinations on Canadian and Quebec soil.”
In a statement released Monday, B’nai Brith Canada called the plot “an attack on Canada’s democratic values and sovereignty” and said it should serve as a wake-up call.
“Canada must act now to combat extremism, mitigate foreign interference and protect its citizens from those who seek to undermine the sanctity of our democracy.
© 2024 The Canadian Press
