Liberals face questions after former IRGC official was reportedly granted visa for FIFA event

The progressive authorities is below go off to explicate how a senior Iranian soccer official with ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps — a listed terrorist group in Canada — was reportedly granted and then denied entry into the country ahead of a pre-FIFA World Cup gathering in Vancouver. 

Iranian state-affiliated media reported that Iranian Football Federation president Mehdi Taj and his delegation were turned away after landing at Toronto's Pearson Airport on Tuesday despite holding valid visas for the FIFA Congress, which brings together more than 200 national soccer associations annually to vote on key issues.

This year's congress is being held in British Columbia weeks before the start of the World Cup. The international soccer championship is being jointly hosted by Canada, Mexico and the U.S. 

Taj is a former commander in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which Canada listed as a terrorist entity in 2024.

That means under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, thousands of senior Iranian government officials including top IRGC members are inadmissible to Canada. Both serving and former senior Iranian government officials who are in Canada can also be investigated and removed.

PM says IRGC members ‘prohibited from entering this country and they will not enter this country’

However, Iran International, the agency that first broke the story, reported that sources within the Canadian government said Taj had been issued a temporary resident permit, a discretionary document that allows a foreign national who is otherwise inadmissible to enter or remain in Canada.   

Prime Minister Mark Carney told reporters Thursday that he can't comment on the specifics of individual cases, but defended Canada's immigration system.

"There are multiple hurdles in order to get into the country, and I think the important thing is that those hurdles are effective and we continue to see that," he said.

"There's always reviews of what's been done and where things can be improved. But the core assurance to Canadians is members of the Revolutionary Guard rightly have been prohibited from entering this country, and they will not enter this country." 

Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand suggested Wednesday there was a mistake in the system. 

"It's not my personal lead, but my understanding is that there is a revocation of the permission. It was unintentional, but I'll leave it to the minister to indicate," Anand told reporters outside of West Block in Ottawa. 

A spokesperson for Immigration Minister Lena Diab said in a statement that "visa applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis by trained officers."

"While we cannot comment on individual cases due to privacy laws, the government has been clear and consistent: IRGC officials are inadmissible to Canada and have no place in our country," said Taous Ait.

"We have taken strong action to hold the IRGC to account and will continue to do so, while protecting the safety of Canadians and upholding the integrity of our immigration system."

Maj and his delegation told Iranian state media they view their airport run-in as an insult.

The incident not only calls into question how — and who — reportedly granted a former IRGC commander a temporary pass, but also risks worsening relations between Iran and Canada before the start of the World Cup as global tensions remain high amid a shaky ceasefire between the United States and the Middle Eastern country.

The sequence of events has raised questions about why and how Taj and his delegation were granted temporary visas. 

"How did the guy get on a plane? He's an Iranian regime official, like, clearly documented. I think a simple Google search would have told them that," Conservative immigration critic Michelle Rempel Garner said Tuesday following initial reports. 

"So it's either gross incompetence or something worse, and the government's going to have to answer for that because there's a lot of members of the diaspora who are persecuted by regime officials."

Iran is one of 48 nations that have qualified for the World Cup. The team is slated to play two games in Inglewood, Calif., and one in Seattle during the tournament's group stage, even though Iran and the U.S. Are currently at war.

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