espionage
51 stories related to this topic, newest first.
cnbc.comU.S. journalist pleads guilty to acting as illegal agent for China
Thomas Weir Pauken II admitted in federal court to working at the direction of Chinese government contacts for years. He received at least $100,000 and gathered information on U.S. targets to pass to handlers.
cnbc.comAmerican Journalist Pleads Guilty to Acting as Agent for Chinese Government
Thomas Pauken II admitted in federal court on June 4, 2026, to working for the Chinese government without registering under U.S. law. He faces sentencing in September and up to 10 years in prison.
upi.comIntelligence official participated in 1985 extraction of KGB double agent
A senior intelligence official took part in the 1985 operation that removed a KGB double agent from the Soviet Union. The operation occurred during the final years of the Cold War.
The HillU.S. Journalist Charged With Acting as Chinese Agent
Thomas Weir Pauken II faces federal charges alleging he worked as an agent for China's Ministry of State Security for at least seven years. He was arrested in early March and is scheduled for a pre-indictment plea hearing on Friday.
Substrate placeholder — needs reviewIran Executes Man Convicted of Espionage for Israel
Iranian authorities executed Gholamreza Khani Shakarab on Tuesday after he was convicted of espionage for Israel's Mossad spy agency. The judiciary said the Supreme Court upheld the sentence.
Substrate placeholder — needs reviewIran Executes Man Convicted of Spying for Israel
Iranian authorities executed a man convicted of espionage for Israel's Mossad. The hanging follows a series of security-related executions since the February outbreak of war with Israel and the United States.
jpost.comIranian Hackers Target Aviation and Oil Firms in Espionage Campaign
Iranian hackers posed as job recruiters to target software engineers at aviation and oil and gas companies. Researchers from Palo Alto Networks Unit 42 tracked the activity during the U.S. and Israeli conflict with Iran.
news.sky.comGermany Charges Two Men with Espionage and Murder Plot Linked to Iran
German prosecutors filed charges against a Danish national and a second man for espionage and attempted murder. The indictment alleges the pair gathered information on Jewish community leaders at the direction of Iran's Revolutionary Guard.
bbc.co.ukAustrian Court Convicts Former Intelligence Officer of Spying for Russia
A Vienna jury found a former Austrian intelligence official guilty of passing information to Russian intelligence and a fugitive executive. The court sentenced the 63-year-old to four years and one month in prison.
The IndependentPoland Detains Three Citizens Suspected of Spying for Russia
Polish authorities arrested three Polish men aged 48 to 62 on suspicion of espionage for Russia. The men are accused of gathering intelligence on NATO troops and preparing sabotage activities.
The IndependentSouthampton Expelled from Championship Playoff Final After Admitting to Unauthorized Filming
Southampton was removed from the second-tier Championship playoff final after admitting to filming other clubs' practice sessions without permission. The playoff final winner receives at least 200 million pounds in future Premier League earnings.
nypost.comFBI Offers $200,000 Reward for Arrest of Former Air Force Intelligence Specialist
The FBI announced a $200,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Monica Witt, a former U.S. Air Force intelligence specialist indicted in 2018 on espionage charges. Witt is accused of defecting to Iran and providing classified information to the Iranian Revolutionary…
foxnews.comTwo Convicted in US for Acting as Unauthorized Agents for China
A New York community leader was found guilty of operating an unauthorized Chinese police station in Manhattan. Separately, the mayor of Arcadia, California, pleaded guilty to publishing pro-China content at the direction of Chinese officials. The cases occurred as President Donal…
foxnews.comFBI Announces $200,000 Reward for Information on Former Air Force Specialist Indicted in 2019
The FBI is offering a $200,000 reward for information leading to the capture of Monica Elfriede Witt, who defected to Iran in 2013 and was indicted in 2019 on espionage charges. Witt, a former counterintelligence specialist, is accused of providing classified national defense inf…
New York PostChinese Influence Operations Target US Politics, Business and Research
Recent federal cases detail Chinese Communist Party-linked influence activities including a secret police station in New York, a California mayor's guilty plea for acting as a foreign agent, and blackmail charges against a Chinese national targeting a sports team owner. Prosecuto…
uctoday.comFBI Offers $200,000 Reward for Former Air Force Intelligence Specialist Monica Witt, Who Defect to Iran in 2013
The FBI announced Thursday it is still seeking Monica Witt, who it believes defected to Iran in 2013 and continues to support the country's activities. Witt, a former counterintelligence officer, faces charges from a 2019 indictment that also named four Iranians. The agency cited…
nbcnews.comU.S. Citizen Convicted of Acting as Unregistered Agent for China After Running Chinatown Service Center
A federal jury in Brooklyn convicted 64-year-old Lu Jianwang on Tuesday of acting as an illegal foreign agent and obstructing justice after he established a Chinese police outpost in New York City's Chinatown in 2022. Prosecutors said the station monitored dissidents at the direc…
Washington ExaminerNew York Man Convicted of Acting as Illegal Agent for China in Manhattan Chinatown Case
Lu “Harry” Jianwang, a U.S. citizen for decades, was found guilty Wednesday in Brooklyn federal court of acting as an illegal foreign agent and obstructing justice. Prosecutors said he established the outpost in Manhattan’s Chinatown in 2022 at China’s direction after attending a…
jns.orgIsraeli Citizen Indicted for Contact with Foreign Agent and Passing Information to Enemy
Prosecutors indicted a 27-year-old resident of Tira on Thursday on charges of maintaining contact with a hostile foreign agent and four counts of passing information to the enemy with intent to harm state security. The charges relate to events during the war with Iran. Ahmad Daas…
nypost.comArcadia Mayor Eileen Wang Resigns Following Federal Guilty Plea
Eileen Wang, 58, resigned as mayor of Arcadia on Monday, the same day federal prosecutors unsealed her guilty plea for acting as an agent of the People's Republic of China. Her case is part of a broader pattern of Chinese influence operations in California politics, according to…
uctoday.comBahrain Sentences 15 to Prison Terms on Charges of Links to Iran and IRGC
Bahrain has sentenced three people, including a woman, to life in prison for working with Iran's IRGC and two more to life in a separate case involving fund transfers and intelligence passing. Ten others received up to 10 years for supporting Iranian attacks, filming restricted s…
france24.comIsraeli Police Warn of Iranian Text Messages Seeking Citizen Recruitment
Israeli citizens received text messages from unknown numbers on May 12, 2026 offering payment for videos related to the Iran war and inviting contact with Iranian embassies. Police described the messages as attempts by Iranian intelligence to recruit individuals in Israel and abr…
bbc.co.ukScottish Man Sentenced to 8.5 Years in Ukraine After Admitting to Passing Military Information to Russia
Ross David Cutmore, from Dunfermline in Fife, was sentenced on 30 April at the Kyiv District Court in Odesa after admitting he passed information on Ukrainian forces to Russia's FSB. He received $6,000 for one task and was detained in October last year while planning terrorist at…
The TimesDeclassified East German Report Reveals KGB Knew About 1955 Berlin Spy Tunnel From the Start
A document rescued after the fall of the Berlin Wall and published for the first time reveals fresh technical details about the joint British-American tunnel used to tap Soviet communications cables. The report, the only surviving copy of a damage assessment compiled for the GDR’…
insurancejournal.comIran-Linked Spy Networks Accused of Running Telegram Campaign Offering Crypto to Australians
A Telegram campaign linked to Iran-linked spy networks has been accused of offering cryptocurrency payments to Australians. The campaign reportedly sought information on Israeli communities in Australia for intelligence gathering. @FirstSquawk reported the allegations on May 10,…
middleeasteye.netBahrain Arrests 41 People Accused of Links to Iran’s IRGC
Bahrain’s Interior Ministry announced the arrest of 41 individuals accused of belonging to a group linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The ministry said the arrests relate to espionage and support for Iranian attacks during the recent war with Israel and the Unite…
Los Angeles TimesBahrain Arrests 41 Individuals Linked to Iranian Revolutionary Guards
Bahrain announced the arrest of 41 people it accused of forming the core of a spying network tied to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Officials said the individuals engaged in espionage with foreign entities and expressed sympathy with Iranian aggression. The announcemen…
bbc.co.ukJustice Department Moves to Denaturalize Victor Manuel Rocha After Conviction for Acting as Cuban Agent
The U.S. Department of Justice filed a civil complaint on May 7, 2026, seeking to strip citizenship from Victor Manuel Rocha, a former U.S. ambassador convicted of spying for Cuba for nearly 40 years. The action is part of a dozen new denaturalization cases announced the followin…
bbc.co.ukJustice Department Sues to Revoke Citizenship of Convicted Cuban Spy Victor Manuel Rocha
The Justice Department filed a civil complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida to denaturalize Victor Manuel Rocha, a former U.S. ambassador to Bolivia who pleaded guilty in 2024 to acting as an unregistered agent of Cuba for more than 40 years. Th…
bbc.co.ukJustice Department Sues to Revoke Citizenship of Convicted Cuban Spy Victor Manuel Rocha
The Justice Department filed a civil complaint in the Southern District of Florida on May 7 to denaturalize Victor Manuel Rocha, a former U.S. ambassador to Bolivia who pleaded guilty in 2024 to acting as an unregistered agent of Cuba for more than 40 years. The suit, if successf…
New York PostJustice Department Files Civil Complaint to Denaturalize Convicted Former U.S. Ambassador Manuel Rocha
Federal prosecutors filed a civil denaturalization complaint Thursday against Manuel Rocha, 75, who served as U.S. ambassador to Bolivia and aided Cuba for four decades. Rocha was arrested in 2023, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 15 years in prison. Officials described the ac…
foxnews.comIsrael Arrests Two Air Force Personnel on Alleged Iranian Espionage Links
Israeli authorities have investigated more than 20 cases involving 40 to 50 suspects over the past year and a half, with most remaining in custody. Capt. Sefi Berger detailed Iranian recruitment tactics ranging from social media infiltration to blackmail. Former handlers describe…
The IndependentFamily Calls for Release of Imprisoned Chinese Journalist Over Health Issues
Family members and activists have called for the release of a Chinese journalist imprisoned since 2022 on espionage charges. The journalist was hospitalized in late April with heart arrhythmia and a lung tumor. The family said he faces a death sentence without medical parole and…
citizen.co.zaHome Office Official Convicted of Spying for Chinese Intelligence
British newspapers reported that a Home Office official has been found guilty of working for Chinese intelligence as part of a shadow policing operation targeting dissidents. The case involved access to a sensitive immigration database and is described as the first conviction for…
The GuardianTwo Men Found Guilty of Assisting Chinese Intelligence Service in UK Court
Chi Leung "Peter" Wai, a former UK Border Force officer, and Chung Biu "Bill" Yuen, a retired Hong Kong police superintendent, were found guilty at the Old Bailey of assisting a foreign intelligence service. The pair conducted surveillance on Hong Kong dissidents and pro-democrac…
jpost.comJonathan Pollard Announces Candidacy for Israeli Knesset
The former U.S. intelligence analyst, who served 30 years in prison for spying for Israel, said he will run in the country's upcoming elections. The announcement was reported on May 7, 2026. NPR reported the development on its Morning Edition program.
yahoo.comTrial Begins for Bronx Man Accused of Operating Unauthorized Chinese Government Office in Manhattan
Lu Jianwang, also known as Harry Lu, faces charges of failing to register as a foreign agent and obstructing justice. Prosecutors say he opened a “Fuzhou Police Overseas Service Station” at 107 East Broadway in 2022 to monitor a pro-democracy dissident on orders from China’s Mini…
nypost.comPoland Reports Sharp Rise in Espionage Investigations, Attributes Increase to Russia
Poland's Internal Security Agency said Russia is moving from one-time online recruits to organized crime networks for sabotage across Europe. The agency recorded 69 espionage investigations in 2024 and 2025, matching the total from 1991 to 2023. It cited a November 2025 railway i…
indiatoday.intoday.inAustria Expels Three Russian Diplomats
Austria declared three Russian diplomats personae non gratae after discovering a 'forest of antennae' on diplomatic properties in Vienna used for illicit data collection. Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger stated the action followed years of scrutiny by intelligence services.…
GB NewsAustria Expels Three Russian Diplomats Over Suspected Embassy Antenna
Austria has expelled three Russian diplomats suspected of espionage after discovering a 'forest of antennae' on diplomatic buildings in Vienna used for data interception. Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger stated the action addresses a security issue, bringing total expulsion…
winnipegfreepress.comAustria Expels Three Russian Diplomats Over Suspected Antenna Use in Vienna
Austria expelled three Russian Embassy employees on May 4, 2026, over suspicions of spying activities involving antennas on diplomatic buildings. The antennas allegedly intercepted data from international organizations in Vienna. Russia's Embassy stated Moscow will respond strong…
indiatoday.intoday.inAustria Expels Three Russian Diplomats
Austria declared three Russian diplomats personae non gratae and expelled them on suspicion of espionage involving a forest of antennae on diplomatic buildings in Vienna. The installations were deemed used for illicit data collection, marking the latest in a series of expulsions…
Substrate placeholder — needs reviewUkrainian Minor Accused of Betraying Country in Online Recruitment Case
Ukraine states that minors are frequently recruited online by strangers using aliases, believed to be linked to Russia's special services. Reuters investigated one case involving a child accused of betraying their country. The inquiry explores reintegration into a war-shaped soci…
Substrate placeholder — needs reviewPhishing Attack Targets Over 300 German Political Accounts via Signal App
Russia is suspected of orchestrating a phishing attack through the Signal app, targeting at least 300 accounts of German political figures, including cabinet members. Hackers posed as Signal Support to gain access to chats and address books. German authorities have been investiga…
EuronewsPhishing Attacks Target German Lawmakers via Signal App, Affecting Over 300 Accounts
German and foreign security services have warned of phishing attacks via the Signal app targeting lawmakers and officials, with the German government attributing the campaign to Russia. Victims receive fake messages prompting PIN entry or link clicks, potentially compromising acc…
Substrate placeholder — needs reviewReport Details US Intelligence Cooperation with Vatican
US investigative journalist Ken Klippenstein revealed a years-long espionage campaign targeting the Vatican, including Pope Leo XIV, by agencies like the CIA and NSA. The report highlights intelligence directives following President Trump's criticism of the pope. Tensions stem fr…
Substrate placeholder — needs reviewIranian Ministry Announces Arrest of Alleged Israeli Spy and 15 Others
Iran's Ministry of Intelligence reported the arrest of an individual accused of spying for Israel and 15 associated individuals. The arrests occurred across five provinces. The announcement was cited by Fars News Agency.
Substrate placeholder — needs reviewIran Executes Man for Alleged Mission on Behalf of Israeli Spy Agency
Iran executed a man on Saturday for carrying out a mission on behalf of Israel's spy agency during mass protests in January, according to the judiciary. The individual, Erfan Kiani, was hanged after the Supreme Court upheld his sentence. The events relate to recent protests in th…
Substrate placeholder — needs reviewPhilippine Authorities Arrest Three Defense Workers for Sharing Sensitive Information
Philippine officials announced the arrest of three civilian defence workers who confessed to sharing sensitive details, including South China Sea resupply missions, with handlers linked to Chinese intelligence. The case stems from fake job ads posted in 2023 on military forums, t…
Substrate placeholder — needs reviewUS Senators Criticize Visa System Over Alleged Chinese Espionage
US senators at a congressional hearing expressed concerns that the visa system facilitates China's alleged theft of American innovation. The discussion focused on legal channels like work visas and university research as potential pathways for espionage. This comes amid intensifi…
Substrate placeholder — needs reviewTwo Israeli Air Force Technicians to Face Espionage Charges Related to Iran
Two technicians from Israel's Tel Nof Airbase are set to be charged with espionage for allegedly providing information to Iran. The charges involve leaking F-15 jet engine diagrams and photographs during Operation Roaring Lion. Authorities are also considering treason charges for…