OTTAWA - Canada is slapping sanctions on five Iranian nationals accused of plotting to kill the Saudi Arabian ambassador to the United States.
The federal government follows the lead of the U.S. and Britain in freezing the individuals' assets and prohibiting Canadians from having financial dealings with them.
They include two men charged in the alleged plot -- Manssor Arbabsiar, an American who also holds Iranian citizenship, and Ali Gholam Shakuri, said to be a member of a special unit of Iran's Revolutionary Guard.
The sanctions also apply to three other members of the Revolutionary Guard -- Qasem Sleimani, Hamed Abdollahi and Abdul Reza Shahlai -- accused of involvement in the failed assassination scheme.
The Foreign Affairs Department says the foiled operation is further evidence of the threat Tehran poses to global peace and security.
Iran denies involvement in the plot, calling it a fabrication.
