In a rare public address delivered on Thursday, November 13, 2025, Dan Rogers, Director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), revealed that the agency has thwarted several Iranian-backed assassination threats this year targeting residents in Canada whom Tehran considers “enemies.”
The remarks, made during the presentation of CSIS’s annual report, mark the first official confirmation that the agency has intervened to protect critics of the Iranian regime living in the country.
Assassination threats detected, investigated and disrupted
Rogers stated that the agency had to readjust its priorities as Iranian intelligence services and their proxies increasingly focused on individuals inside Canada.
“We identified, investigated and disrupted potential killing threats targeting specific figures in Canada,” he said, without disclosing names or operational details.
His statement aligns with concerns raised in several Western countries over Iran’s escalating operations to intimidate or eliminate dissidents abroad.
CSIS warns of Russian procurement networks
The CSIS director also highlighted Russia’s attempts to illegally acquire Canadian goods and technologies despite international sanctions.
According to Rogers, Russian procurement networks use European-based “front companies” linked to Russian intelligence operatives to bypass restrictions. CSIS recently alerted multiple Canadian firms to these tactics, allowing them to deny sales of sensitive products.
“By sharing intelligence with Canadian companies, we enabled them to block Russian access to strategic technologies,” he noted.
A rising geopolitical threat landscape
Rogers’ warnings underline Canada’s growing exposure to hostile foreign interference, at a time when global geopolitical tensions are driving an increase in covert operations carried out through transnational networks.
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