Second Iranian Government Official Expelled from Canada; Salman Samani Convicted Like Majid Iranmanesh

Global News reported that the Canadian Immigration Court issued an expulsion order for Salman Samani, Deputy Minister of Interior in Rouhani's government, on Wednesday, March 21. According to the website, Salman Samani is the second "senior member of the Iranian regime" to be expelled from Canada under sanctions approved in 2022. Prior to him, Majid Iranmanesh, former Director General of Support and Information Technology at the Islamic Republic's Presidential Office, was expelled by court order from Canada. Part of the lawsuit presented against Samani focused on a press conference after the nationwide protests in November 2019, where Samani served as the spokesperson for the Ministry of Interior. Salman Samani confirmed during the Immigration and Refugee Commission session on February 8 that he was working under the supervision of Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli, the then-Minister of Interior, but claimed he was unaware of his orders to police forces for the killing of protesting Iranians. He also stated that the events of 2019 "disturbed him so much" that he decided to leave the government, but when asked why he continued to work in the Ministry of Interior for two more years, he said, "I decided to stay in the Ministry of Interior to help fight the COVID-19 pandemic and assist the people of Iran." Global News also reported that a third senior official of the Islamic Republic is under review for expulsion from Canada, though they did not name him. Currently, at least nine other Iranians are under investigation for expulsion from Canada due to their alleged ties to the "Tehran regime" following the suppression and widespread killing of protesters in 2022.