Iran Denounces Canada for Freezing Assets

Iranian foreign ministry denounced a Canadian court ruling that froze Iranian government assets in Canada. Foreign ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said Iran held Canada’s government responsible for the court order.

The action by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice was in response to a request filed by the family of an American, Marla Bennett, who was killed in a Jerusalem bombing 11 years ago that was said to be the work of Hamas, the Lebanese group supported by Iran. The Bennett family won a default judgment against Iran for $12.9 million in an American court but was unable to collect.

“The political motivations behind such a move are not hidden to anybody,” said Mehmanparast. (IRNA/NYTimes, 5 November)