Canadian Appeals Court Confirms Seizure of Iran's Billion-Dollar Assets

A Canadian appeals court has upheld a ruling to seize Iranian assets in favor of American victims of terrorism, which was issued by U.S. courts. According to this ruling, $1.7 billion of Iran's assets will be confiscated for the benefit of American citizens. The local newspaper National Post reported that the court rejected Iran's appeal and accused Tehran of attempting to obstruct justice for terrorism victims. Meanwhile, in Iran, Mohammad Baqer Nobakht, spokesperson for President Hassan Rouhani's government, expressed ignorance about the ruling on Tuesday morning, July 2, and stated that he would order an investigation into the matter. In July 2014, a New York appeals court ruled that $1.75 billion from Iran's assets should be awarded to the families of Americans killed in the 1983 Beirut bombing. This money is actually part of a $2.65 billion amount that a U.S. judge ordered Iran to pay these families in 2007. However, due to the limited assets left by the Iranian government in the U.S., these victims turned to Canadian courts to seek their compensation. The Ontario court's rejection of Iran's appeal is considered another victory for terrorism victims who accuse Iran of supporting Hamas and Hezbollah in terrorist incidents from 1980 to 2002, including the bombing of the U.S. Marines' headquarters in Beirut. This ruling was issued based on the "Justice for Victims of Terrorism" law, which violates the sovereign immunity of individuals who support terrorism. Previously, a court in Ontario had also ordered the Iranian government to pay legal costs to plaintiffs who had sued the Islamic Republic for "supporting terrorism." The court gave Iran one month to pay $300,000. Bahram Qasemi, spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry, responded by stating that the Canadian judge issued this ruling "without regard to international regulations and the principle of equality of states," and that this ruling is considered "invalid" by Iran. In June 2016, the Ontario court also ruled that $13 million from Iran's non-diplomatic assets should be paid as compensation to the families of victims of American hostage-takings and attacks in Argentina, Israel, Lebanon, and Saudi Arabia between 1983 and 2002. On Thursday, July 8, a jury in a Manhattan court found that U.S. government lawyers had proven that the Alavi Foundation concealed Iran's role in controlling the skyscraper at 650 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, New York. According to John Kim, the acting attorney for the U.S. government, this ruling allows the U.S. government to seize this 36-story building on Fifth Avenue. He added that the building is valued at $500 million, which is considered the largest penalty related to terrorist actions in U.S. history. Reuters assessed the value of this building to be nearly $1 billion. Last year, Iran officially filed a complaint against the United States at the International Court of Justice, stating that U.S. courts had issued $56 billion in judgments against Iran "alleging involvement in terrorist acts outside U.S. territory." Iran has consistently denied allegations of supporting terrorism and considers itself "the only country that truly fights against terrorism." In this context, Rouhani's government officials accused Ahmadinejad of negligence in the Luxembourg case. The New York Times reported that the Luxembourg court's ruling to seize $1.6 billion of Iran's assets, the Canadian court's ruling for compensation from Iran's non-diplomatic assets, and the jury's decision in New York opened the way for the seizure of the Alavi Tower.