Canada Says It Disrupted Potentially Lethal Iranian Threats on Its Soil
Canadian intelligence says Iranian services and their proxies targeted people regarded as threats to Tehran's government, warning that the danger to Canada and its allies is likely to persist.
The Canadian Security Intelligence Service has disrupted potentially lethal threats against individuals in Canada in multiple cases involving Iranian intelligence services and their proxies, the agency told Iran International in a report published October 31, 2026.
CSIS said the targets were people Tehran perceived as threats to its government. It assessed that Iranian threat activity directed at Canada and its allies would likely continue in 2026.
Agency Withholds Details of Operations
CSIS declined to identify specific investigations or explain how it intervened, citing the need to protect intelligence sources and operational methods.
"In more than one case this involved detecting, investigating, and disrupting potentially lethal threats against individuals in Canada," the agency told Iran International.
It said its response involves cooperation with foreign partners and Canadian law enforcement, alongside engagement with communities that could face intimidation.
Similar Threats Were Disclosed in 2025
The latest comments follow an earlier public warning. In its director's annual speech in November 2025, CSIS said Iranian intelligence activity had forced it to shift operational priorities to protect people viewed by Tehran as opponents.
That speech also described interventions against potentially lethal threats in more than one case.
CSIS describes attempts by foreign governments to intimidate or punish people abroad as transnational repression. Its director warned that the consequences extend beyond the immediate targets: threats can discourage others from speaking publicly, engaging in lawful advocacy or participating in community life.
The agency has identified surveillance, extortion, reputational attacks and threats against relatives abroad among the methods used in such repression. At its most extreme, it can endanger lives.
Threats Can Reach Families Abroad
The agency's 2025 public report provides an example of how pressure can spread across borders.
It described the publication of personal information belonging to a Canadian resident associated with Iran International after the Handala Hack Team claimed to have compromised the broadcaster in July 2025. The report noted that security researchers had linked the group to Iranian intelligence services.
The exposed information included photographs and identity documents. Within days, the resident received hundreds of violent threats, while authorities harassed their family in Iran, according to CSIS. The agency said it worked with Canadian and foreign partners to respond.
CSIS said the aim of that harassment was to silence journalists and pressure them to stop working for a broadcaster critical of Iran's government.
The public report also assessed that hostile foreign actors would continue using intermediaries, including people connected to organized crime, to target perceived enemies overseas.
Canada and Allies Condemn Overseas Attacks
The warning comes amid a broader international response to Iranian operations abroad.
On October 12, 2026, Canada joined the United States, Britain and other governments in condemning Iranian activity involving lethal plots, arson, sabotage and cyberattacks. The governments pledged to identify, investigate, disrupt and prosecute hostile acts carried out on Iran's behalf.
An earlier joint statement, issued in June, specifically identified Iranian dissidents, journalists, and Jewish and Israeli communities and interests among the targets of Iranian security services. It also condemned those services' relationships with criminal groups.
