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Ottawa Raises Alarm With Beijing Over Hong Kong Detention of CPC Candidate Joe Tay’s Family

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Sam Cooper's avatar Sam Cooper

Global Affairs Canada stated it “deplores the decision by Hong Kong authorities to punish people for actions that amount to nothing more than freedom of expression.”

Ottawa has “raised its strong concerns directly with both Chinese and Hong Kong authorities” and is monitoring the circumstances surrounding the detention and interrogation of family members of former Conservative election candidate Joe Tay in Hong Kong, Canada’s national intelligence agency confirmed to The Bureau today.

“Global Affairs Canada is aware of Mr. Tay’s family members being called in for questioning in Hong Kong. They are tracking the situation closely, and are in contact with Mr. Tay,” a CSIS spokesperson said.

The federal government issued a rare public rebuke, with Global Affairs Canada stating it “deplores the decision by Hong Kong authorities to punish people for actions that amount to nothing more than freedom of expression.”

“It is unacceptable that Hong Kong authorities have placed a bounty on the head of a Canadian citizen,” the CSIS statement added. “Issuing threats and intimidation against a Canadian citizen is transnational repression and will not be tolerated.”

Questioned by The Bureau on the circumstances surrounding the 2025 federal election, CSIS added that “in particular, when intelligence collected spoke to a threat to the safety of any candidate, CSIS shares this information with all relevant law enforcement partners.”

The confirmation of Hong Kong’s actions against Tay’s family follows The Bureau’s reporting that Hong Kong police detained his cousin and the man’s wife for questioning on Thursday in the Fo Tan district. The incident—deemed credible by Canadian and diplomatic sources—appears to be a targeted act of intimidation tied to Tay’s high-profile candidacy in the 2025 federal election.

Tay, 62, ran as a Conservative candidate in Don Valley North and lost by approximately 5,000 votes. He was heavily targeted by Chinese Communist Party (CCP) influence networks during the election, with PRC-linked WeChat accounts spreading disinformation and narratives portraying Canada as a “refuge for fugitives” if he were elected.

As The Bureau previously revealed, the RCMP advised Tay to suspend in-person campaigning in the final week due to credible threats. The SITE Task Force assessed that Tay was subject to a coordinated foreign interference campaign and broader transnational repression effort.

The rhetoric used to discredit Tay was later echoed by Liberal MP Paul Chiang, who was supported by Prime Minister Mark Carney during the campaign. Chiang’s re-election bid collapsed after The Bureau confirmed that the RCMP had opened a national security review. The RCMP told The Bureau it has opened an investigation into the matter but would not provide further details.

The detentions of Tay’s relatives occurred just 48 hours after Prime Minister Carney’s closed-door meeting in Washington with U.S. President Donald Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance.

That Beijing appears determined to continue persecuting Tay’s family—even after his electoral defeat—signals a broader strategic aim and presents an early and consequential test for Carney, who campaigned on defending Canadian sovereignty while opposing Trump’s tariff regime. The timing—days after Carney’s White House meeting—suggests Beijing may be probing Ottawa’s resolve under new leadership.

In their statement, CSIS and Global Affairs Canada warned that transnational repression and foreign interference remain pervasive threats inside Canada, with CSIS and the RCMP dedicating significant resources to countering these efforts. They confirmed that during the 2025 election, the SITE Task Force monitored candidate safety, advised the government, and took active steps to mitigate threats.

CSIS also confirmed that SITE will publish a public post-election report summarizing the threat landscape, interference patterns, and actions taken during the writ period.

The Bureau has previously documented Beijing’s use of family-based intimidation as part of its global enforcement strategy. On April 10, 2025, The Bureau confirmed that the parents of Hong Kong activist Frances Hui were detained by Hong Kong national security police after Hui testified before Canada’s Parliament. Hui, now based in the United States, was previously followed and threatened by an alleged PRC agent who was later indicted—but not convicted—by U.S. authorities.

Tay’s case fits that pattern. The Bureau has learned that a report reviewed by Toronto police during the campaign included a stalking threat involving Tay’s team.

The formal charges against Tay were issued by Hong Kong police in December 2024. According to official documents reviewed by The Bureau, Tay—born 12 December 1962—was charged with incitement to secession and collusion with a foreign country or with external elements to endanger national security. Authorities allege that between July 2020 and June 2024, Tay operated a platform called HongKonger Station, through which he published “numerous videos inciting secession” and “repeatedly urged foreign countries to impose sanctions” on officials in Beijing and Hong Kong.

The SITE Task Force confirmed these charges were amplified by PRC intelligence-linked media during the Canadian election in an effort to delegitimize Tay and portray his candidacy as a threat to the PRC.

Editor’s Note: This story was updated to note the defendant in the Frances Hui case was not convicted.

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Iran nuclear talks were ‘coordinated deception’ between US and Israel: report

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From LifeSiteNews

By Kyle Anzalone

Reports state that U.S. peace talks were a ruse and that Trump gave Netanyahu a ‘green light’ to hit Iran’s nuclear and military sites, killing top commanders.

A senior Israeli official told the Jerusalem Post that Tel Aviv and Washington worked together to convince Tehran that diplomacy was still possible after Israel was ready to attack Iran. Just hours before Israel’s massive assault began, President Donald Trump maintained he was still committed to talks.

The Israeli outlet reports, “The round of U.S.-Iranian nuclear negotiations scheduled for Sunday was part of a coordinated U.S.-Israeli deception aimed at lowering Iran’s guard ahead of Friday’s attack.”

READ: Israel strikes Iran’s nuclear sites, kills top commanders in massive air assault

In a post on Truth Social shortly before the Israeli strikes began, Trump declared that “We remain committed to a Diplomatic Resolution to the Iran Nuclear Issue! My entire Administration has been directed to negotiate with Iran. They could be a Great Country, but they first must completely give up hopes of obtaining a Nuclear Weapon. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”

After the Israeli attack was in progress, Secretary of State Marco Rubio denied that the U.S. was involved. However, American officials have said the White House was aware Israel was set to begin striking Iran, with Trump telling Fox News he was briefed on the operation.

Barak Ravid of Axios, moreover, later reported that Tel Aviv was given “a clear U.S. green light” to start bombing, citing two unnamed Israeli officials.

Sources speaking with Axios said the perceived split between Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was coordinated behind the scenes. “Two Israeli officials claimed to Axios that Trump and his aides were only pretending to oppose an Israeli attack in public – and didn’t express opposition in private,” the report explained. “The goal, they say, was to convince Iran that no attack was imminent and make sure Iranians on Israel’s target list wouldn’t move to new locations.”

The sources said that Trump and Netanyahu discussed the attack during a phone call on Monday. After the call, reports said Trump pressed Netanyahu not to attack Iran, but that was another effort to deceive Iran.

In a second post following the attack, Trump said he gave Iran the opportunity to make a deal, and suggested that Israel used American weapons in the massive air raid. “I gave Iran chance after chance to make a deal. I told them, in the strongest of words, to ‘just do it,’ but no matter how hard they tried, no matter how close they got, they just couldn’t get it done,” the president wrote.

The U.S. and Iran began negotiations on establishing a new nuclear agreement in April, with the two sides engaging in five rounds of Omani-mediated talks. At times, a deal appeared possible, with Iranian officials saying the dialogue was leading to progress. A sixth round of talks was scheduled for Sunday, but now appears unlikely.

A second source speaking with the Jerusalem Post said the goal of Israel’s military operations was not the complete destruction of Iran’s nuclear facilities, but rather to hit missile sites and top Iranian leaders to bring down the government.

Israel has conducted several rounds of strikes so far, hitting nuclear facilities, residential buildings in Tehran, and military sites. Iran has confirmed that several military leaders and nuclear scientists were killed in the bombing.

Reprinted with permission from Antiwar.com.

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espionage

FBI Director: CCP Behind Wave of Pathogen Smuggling as Third Chinese Student Charged in Michigan Lab Probe

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Sam Cooper's avatar Sam Cooper

“In a follow up interview with FBI and ICE HSI agents, Han admitted to sending the packages and lying about their contents”

In an intensifying pattern of national security investigations targeting unauthorized biological shipments from China into Detroit, U.S. authorities on Monday confirmed the arrest of a third Chinese national allegedly involved in smuggling undeclared bio-materials into the United States—this time for use at a University of Michigan laboratory.

“This case is part of a broader effort from the FBI and our federal partners to heavily crack down on similar pathogen smuggling operations, as the Chinese Communist Party works relentlessly to undermine America’s research institutions,” FBI Director Kash Patel posted to X on Monday evening.

The latest defendant, Chengxuan Han, is a citizen of the People’s Republic of China and a doctoral student at the College of Life Science and Technology in Wuhan. She has been charged with smuggling goods into the U.S. and making false statements, according to a federal criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Detroit.

From September 2024 through March 2025, prosecutors allege, Han sent four international shipments containing concealed biological materials to individuals affiliated with a University of Michigan lab. The contents were identified as Caenorhabditis elegans — roundworms commonly used in genetic and biomedical research. The packages were mis-manifested and not declared in accordance with U.S. import regulations.

On June 8, Han arrived at Detroit Metropolitan Airport on a J-1 visa and was stopped by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers. She allegedly denied having sent any biological materials to the U.S. and made false statements about the nature of the shipments. Agents also discovered that content on her electronic device had been deleted three days before her arrival — a detail included in the federal complaint.

“In a follow up interview with FBI and ICE HSI agents, Han admitted to sending the packages and lying about their contents,” Patel commented.

“The alleged smuggling of biological materials by this alien from a science and technology university in Wuhan, China — to be used at a University of Michigan laboratory — is part of an alarming pattern that threatens our security,” said U.S. Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon, Jr. “The American taxpayer should not be underwriting a PRC-based smuggling operation at one of our crucial public institutions.”

The case marks the third time in one week that Chinese nationals connected to the University of Michigan have been charged with allegedly smuggling undeclared biological material from China into the U.S. for laboratory research.

On June 3, federal prosecutors charged Yunqing Jian, 33, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Michigan, and her boyfriend, Zunyong Liu, 34, with conspiracy, smuggling goods into the U.S., false statements, and visa fraud. Jian and Liu are accused of importing Fusarium graminearum — a fungus considered in some scientific literature to be a potential agroterrorism threat — into the country without proper declaration.

Officials allege Liu, who conducts research on the same pathogen at a university in China, initially lied to investigators but later admitted to smuggling the fungus for research in Jian’s Michigan lab.

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