VANCOUVER -- A document that appears to have been leaked from U.S. Customs and Border Protection suggests officers were given a direct order to vet people with ties to Iran or Lebanon following Qassim Suleimani's assassination this month.
The memo is undated, but titled "Iranian Supreme Leader Vows Forceful Revenge after US Kills Maj. General Qassim Suleimani in Baghdad – Threat Alert High," indicating it was released soon after the high-ranking Iranian official was killed in a drone strike on Jan. 3.
According to the document, frontline border officers were told to conduct vetting on "all individuals" who were born between 1961 and 2001 and had so much as traveled to Iran or Lebanon. Iranian and Lebanese nationals were also targeted, as were Palestinians.
The document, which was apparently distributed by the CBP's Seattle Field Office, was delivered anonymously to immigration lawyer Len Saunders' office in Blaine, Wash.
"We have a situation where they're profiling Iranian-born individuals and other people from the Middle East," Saunders said Wednesday. "Where does it stop?"
Asked about the memo, a spokesperson for Customs and Border Protection said the agency "does not comment on leaked documents." The individual directed CTV News to a previous statement on the security measures enacted after Suleimani's death.
"Consistent with our statutory authorities, CBP leverages all available tools and information to ensure that individuals who seek entry into the United States are appropriately screened," it reads.
"As part of a multi-layered approach to security, CBP officers may refer for additional screening individuals who present a known risk or individuals about whom we need more information to make a determination of risk. These referrals are based on factors that could include the individual’s activities, associations and travel patterns."
The Council on American-Islamic Relations reported that more than 60 U.S. and Canadian citizens of Iranian descent were held at the Peace Arch border in B.C. over the weekend of Jan. 4. Some had travelled to Vancouver for a concert.
One Canadian man who was heading south for his first visit to the U.S. said he was held for eight hours, and saw families with children among the people being kept at the border.
"A lot of people who were caught up in this round-up have basically said, do I not have any constitutional rights at the border?" Saunders said. "They're basically basing your profile on place of birth."
In response to the purported document leak, Washington state Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal said she was seeking an "immediate meeting" with the director of the CBP's Seattle Field Office.
"This is absolutely unacceptable. It reminds me of the dark times in our country's history," she wrote on Twitter. "We cannot implement loyalty tests or discriminate against individuals in the name of national security."
With files from CTV News Vancouver's Allison Hurst
