Iran has taken Canada to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for allegedly breaching Tehran's state immunity by designating it a sponsor of terrorism, the UN's top court said Wednesday, according to AFP.
In 2012, under the leadership of former Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Canada closed its embassy in Iran and expelled Iranian diplomats from Canada. The move came as relations frayed over Tehran's support for Bashar Al-Assad's regime in Syria, its nuclear program, and threats to Israel.
The Islamic Republic says Canada breached its immunity by a law passed in 2012 that allows victims and their families to collect damages from state sponsors of terrorism, the AFP report said.
Foreign states are normally immune to Canadian civil claims.
Iran had launched legal proceedings against Canada on Tuesday "concerning alleged violations of its immunities" as a sovereign state, the Hague-based ICJ said in a statement.
"Canada has adopted and implemented a series of legislative, executive, and judicial measures against Iran and its property in breach of its international obligations," Iran said in its filing to the court.
Iran demanded compensation from Canada for the "violation of its international obligations", and asked the ICJ to tell Ottawa to overrule any judgments against Tehran in Canadian courts.
There was no immediate reaction from Canada.
AFP noted that the case is similar to Iran's long-running claim at the ICJ against the United States for billions of dollars in assets frozen to compensate terror attacks.
In 2017, it was reported that Iran and Canada were moving toward full renewal of diplomatic relations. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government had been working to renew ties with the Islamic Republic.