On April 13, 2017, the Government of Canada further amended its sanctions against Syria, which are contained in the Special Economic Measures (Syria) Regulations (the “Regulations”) made pursuant to the Special Economic Measures Act.

Under the Regulations, persons in Canada and Canadians outside Canada are subject to a number of prohibitions on dealings with designated persons as well as disclosure requirements with regard to certain property or information related to designated persons.

The amendments add 27 additional individuals to the list of designated persons in Schedule 1 of the Regulations.  The newly designated persons include high-ranking officials in the Assad regime.  A Government of Canada press release indicates that the individuals were designated as part of international efforts to end violence by the Assad regime against its own people and engage in meaningful negotiations to find a solution to end the war in Syria.

Two individuals were also removed from the list of designated persons, with no reasons given.

An unofficial copy of the amendments can be found here.