Canada warns travelers that US border agents could search electronic devices
In a revised travel advisory posted online, it urges Canadians to 'expect scrutiny' when crossing the border and warns that refusing to comply involves risks including device seizure, travel delays, or the denial of entry for non-US citizens.
Under US law, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents may demand passwords to unlock devices during inspections. Travelers who refuse the demand risk having their electronics confiscated and may face long delays.
The advisory recommends placing devices in airplane mode before crossing to prevent unintended downloads of remote files, which could complicate screenings.
The move follows recent incidents involving such searches. Last month, Dr. Rasha Alawieh, a Lebanese assistant professor and physician at Brown University, was deported to Lebanon after US agents at Boston Logan International Airport discovered deleted photos of the late Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on her phone.
The existence of the photos was outlined in a court filing obtained by CNN affiliate WCVB.
'In explaining why these multiple photos were deleted by her one to two days before she arrived at Logan Airport, Dr. Alawieh stated that she did not want to give authorities the perception that she supports Hezbollah and the Ayatollah politically or militarily,' the filing reads, per WCVB.
While US authorities maintain that device searches are critical for national security, civil liberties groups have long criticized the practice as invasive.
The US Supreme Court has upheld the authority of border agents to conduct warrantless device searches, citing the 'border search exception' to the Fourth Amendment.
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Politico
32 minutes ago
- Politico
Stars, stripes and side-eye
Send tips | Subscribe here | Email Canada Playbook | Follow Politico Canada Thanks for reading Canada Playbook. It's Friday! Happy Fourth to our American readers. In today's edition: → PETE HOEKSTRA throws his first July 4 bash in Ottawa. → Ottawa holds firm as deadlines shift — and Playbook gets the inside scoop. → Who killed the campaign? Conservatives circle the BBQ grill. Trade war RED, WHITE AND YOU — Free beer or free trade? That's the question for Ottawa's political class. The bubble has been keeping quiet about U.S. Ambassador PETE HOEKSTRA's July 4th party. It's his first bash in Canada, and the Ottawa fishbowl event is one of the biggest of the year. The Independence Day invites are usually highly sought after by staffers, lobbyists, journalists — and everyone in between. — Feeling excited: 'I see it as not only an opportunity to mark the founding of the United States but also a chance to celebrate the U.S.-Canada bilateral relationship and our long history of working together in North America and on the world stage,' Hoekstra told Playbook in a statement. — Theme: Per Hoekstra: Summer picnic with 'delicious delights typically featured at Fourth of July celebrations across the United States.' — Trade war buzzkill: This year, downing American beer and chomping burgers might be a challenge with elbows up. Canada and the U.S. remain in high-stakes trade negotiations, and tariffs continue to hurt Canadian workers and businesses. — Déjà vu: There is no PMO memo this year — but in the past, the silence was loud enough: In 2018, government staffers and MPs were largely absent from then-ambassador KELLY CRAFT's July 4th party during NAFTA renegotiations and tariffs on Canadian steel. Even then-Ottawa Mayor JIM WATSON snubbed the event. — No two ways about it: 'It was a very difficult time with the United States on many fronts,' TYLER MEREDITH, former economic adviser to then-Prime Minister JUSTIN TRUDEAU, told Playbook. — Think about the optics: This year is no different, Meredith argues. On X, he said that any business leaders showing up to Hoekstra's party for a photo, 'should think about the values they believe in.' He told Playbook: 'We're in high-stakes negotiations with the United States that in the next three weeks could have significant consequences for auto workers, steel workers, softwood lumber workers, energy workers, etcetera.' — RSVP: Liberal MPs who attended last year say they're planning on going again, including MONA FORTIER, parl sec for Foreign Affairs Minister ANITA ANAND. Fortier told Playbook she will 'focus on keeping the line of communication open and also fostering people to people ties!' Liberal MP ROB OLIPHANT tells Playbook he'll also be there: 'Conversation is important as our government continues negotiating the best deal for Canadians with the American government.' Playbook confirmed that Conservative Leader PIERRE POILIEVRE and Opposition Leader ANDREW SCHEER won't be in attendance. The New Democrats, who boycotted the party in 2018, didn't get back to us to share their plans. Neither did Mayor MARK SUTCLIFFE though we know the U.S. flag will fly over Ottawa city hall today. — Across the pond: Opposition lawmakers in Ireland won't be attending Fourth of July celebrations at the U.S. embassy in Dublin. Labour TD CONOR SHEEHAN said he 'couldn't think of anything worse,' the Irish Examiner reported. — Hot diggity dog: If your invite landed, Hoekstra's promising a good time. The team has spent months planning the shindig. 'It's the U.S. Embassy's biggest event of the year and our best opportunity to reconnect with our Embassy contacts,' Hoekstra tells Playbook. 'We are very proud of its reputation as one of the must-attend events of the summer.' DEADLINE? WHAT DEADLINE? — On June 16, MARK CARNEY dropped a 30-day deadline to remove DONALD TRUMP's tariffs — part of a larger deal. — The PM set the target: The date has bounced around ever since his Kananaskis bilat with the president. Even now, Ottawa and Washington do not appear to be aligned. — First: Canada-U.S. Trade Minister DOMINIC LEBLANC's office confirmed a July 16 deadline to Playbook — though the Liberal government planned to wait until July 21 to further retaliate against U.S. tariffs if needed. — And then: This week, Carney started using July 21 as the deadline, a date dropped in ink on a finance department communique. — But, wait: U.S. Treasury Secretary SCOTT BESSENT seems to be inching out the goalpost. 'I think with [the digital services tax] being removed, we can proceed on a normalized basis, and we'll see whether the Canadians come with the satisfactory negotiations over the next 20 to 30 days,' Bessent told Fox Business Network on Thursday. — Do the math: That would put us between July 23 and Aug. 2. — This week: LeBlanc spoke with Commerce Sec. HOWARD LUTNICK, but the details of their discussion remain private. — The very latest: The Prime Minister's Office advised Playbook that July 21 is the deadline — and that the Canadian side has no plans to move it. — In related reading: From COLBY COSH in the Post: Canada shows you really can hit yourself when you go elbows up. INSIDER INSIGHT — The end of the DST drama appears to have cleared the way for Ottawa and Washington to pick up talks. Playbook got the skinny on what's ahead from a Canadian government official with direct knowledge of negotiations. We've granted them anonymity so that they could speak candidly. The key points on the table: → Sealing the deal on critical minerals: Canada would supply rare earth minerals and develop joint projects as part of a two-country effort to reduce dependence on China by building a secure, North American supply chain. 'The thing about critical minerals is that you need about three or four factories to actually turn it into something useful,' said the official. 'You can't just put nickel into a battery casing. It has to be turned into nickel sulfate.' → Law and order and beyond: The U.S. wants Ottawa to pass Bill C-2, the Strong Borders Act, which would enhance cooperation on law enforcement. 'At the heart of what the U.S. wants is to join arms in law enforcement with Canada, with the same kind of toolkit that they use: intercepts under FISA warrants, the Patriot Act,' the official said, pointing to the advanced surveillance and anti-terror powers contained in those American laws. → Tariffs: Canada may be aiming to remove all U.S. tariffs, but the president considers is on a mission to reset America's tariff wall. In this system, the winners will be those that have the lowest relative tariffs. The long-term goal could be to negotiate a low-enough tariff that would allow Canada to preserve its steel, aluminum and auto industries. — Bottom line: 'For Canada the question is: What price are you able or willing to pay, from a policy perspective, to be able to get a reduction?' said the official. — In related reading: Canada's new supply management law won't save the system from Trump, CP's KYLE DUGGAN reports. Want more POLITICO? Download our mobile app to save stories, get notifications on U.S.-Canada relations, and more. In iOS or Android . THE ROOMS THAT MATTER — The Calgary Stampede. Confirmed attendance: MARK CARNEY, PIERRE POILIEVRE, ELIZABETH MAY and Energy Minister TIM HODGSON. Share your 'spotteds.' — On Sunday the federal executives of the New Democrat Party are expected to lay out rules around their leadership election. WHO'S UP, WHO'S DOWN Up: Easterners in Smithbilts. Whoop-Eee-Eee-Eee. Down: The number of B.C. cars crossing into Washington state — for the fifth month in a row. CONVERSATION STARTER POST-MORTEM — PIERRE POILIEVRE is on the bill at the Conservative Party BBQ in Calgary on Saturday. — Barbecue sauce: In case you're at a loss for small talk around the grill … we spoke to some Conservatives who argue the party should not be afraid to talk about what just happened. DAN ROBERTSON's argument for a comprehensive exercise that explains why Conservatives lost to MARK CARNEY boils down to three words. 'More is more,' Robertson, a longtime Conservative campaign adviser who devised ERIN O'TOOLE's electoral strategy in 2021, recently told Playbook. — A full menu: The founding partner of ORB Advocacy said a proper post-mortem exercise includes polling, interviews with war room operatives and local campaign managers, and frank reflections from the senior campaign team. — Don't hold back: He put himself through the ringer following the 2021 loss. 'I basically wrote a lengthy, unflinching, self-critical memo' that acknowledged his own strategic mistakes and charted a path for the next election (which, as it turned out, O'Toole never got the chance to fight). Robertston commissioned a post-vote survey with a massive sample of 10,000 respondents — and recommends doing it again this time. 'I would be polling the heck out of people,' he said, focusing on a wide gender gap that favored Liberals and the flight of older voters to Carney's side. He'd zero in on the Greater Toronto Area. So would JAMES CUMMING, the former Edmonton Centre MP who compiled a post-mortem following that 2021 defeat that eventually leaked all over town. Back then, Cumming spoke to more than 200 people, including candidates, campaigners, party members and 'thought leaders.' Much of that Covid-era work was virtual, but Cumming also traveled to Vancouver, Calgary, Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal and Quebec City. 'I would spend an abundance of time in swing ridings, and particularly on recruitment into them, on tactics, on pre-election preparation,' Cumming told us. The former MP also cautioned against 'analysis paralysis' — aka don't overthink it. But don't underthink it, he said: 'Any time you lose, whether it's an electoral race or in business where you are chasing a deal and you fail to make it, you always want to know what could I have done differently.' — Manage expectations: Robertson recalled an adage that circulates among campaigners — and could serve as a balm to Poilievre's senior team: 'When you win, you get more credit than you deserve, and when you lose, you get more blame than you deserve.' MORNING MUST-CLICKS — Trump takes a megabill victory lap at Iowa rally, our colleague BEN JOHANSEN reports. — And from POLITICO's MEREDITH LEE HILL: Inside the Freedom Caucus' final surrender. — Reuters reports: U.S. will send letters to countries on Friday laying out tariff rates. — RAHIM MOHAMED notes in the Post that Alberta and Ontario are calling for a repeal of Trudeau-era climate policies. — And a spokeswoman for Environment Minister JULIE DABRUSIN told STEPHANIE TAYLOR that Canada's EV mandate must 'reflect' current times. PLAYBOOKERS Birthdays: HBD to GT and Company's BRIAN TOPP (65!) and to former MP CHRIS CHARLTON. Also celebrating today: Retired Sen. MARJORY LEBRETON (85!), Empire Company CEO MICHAEL MEDLINE, Quebec MNA CHANTAL ROULEAU and Crestview VP NICHOLAS POZHKE. HBD + 1 to JOHN PEPPER. Saturday: Political consultant ANDREW PEREZ and former Premiers PIERRE-MARC JOHNSON and GRANT DEVINE. Sunday: Former Manitoba Premier BRIAN PALLISTER, former Harper Cabmin JEAN-PIERRE BLACKBURN, former Bloc Québécois MP ALAIN THERRIEN, broadcaster and podcaster PETER MANSBRIDGE and Conservative strategist JENNI BYRNE. Noted: Prime Minister MARK CARNEY has invited Philippines President FERDINAND MARCOS JR. to Canada. Movers and shakers: A shakeup in the ambassador ranks: ALEXANDRE BILODEAU to Tunisia … SANDRA CHOUFANI to Côte d'Ivoire … CHRISTIAN DESROCHES to Cambodia … AMBRA DICKIE to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, in Jakarta … STEPHEN DOUST to Mongolia … GREGORY GALLIGAN to the Lebanon … ALISON GRANT to Austria … PATRICK HÉBERT to Finland … JEAN-DOMINIQUE IERACI to Peru … CRAIG KOWALIK to Ecuador … PHILIPPE LAFORTUNE to Korea … JEAN-PAUL LEMIEUX to Switzerland … KARIM MORCOS to Qatar … JAMES NICKEL to Vietnam … TARA SCHEURWATER to Kuwait … NICOLAS SIMARD to Ethiopia … KENT VACHON to Lao, and NATALIE BRITTON is consul general in Istanbul. New high commissioners: ANDERSON BLANC to Mozambique … MARIE-CLAUDE HARVEY to Cameroon … TARIK KHAN to Pakistan … ISABELLE MARTIN to Sri Lanka and JOSHUA TABAH to Kenya. Lobby watch: Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities posted a June 14 meeting with Agriculture Minister HEATH MACDONALD … The Explorers and Producers Association of Canada reported a June 16 meeting with shadow energy critic MP SHANNON STUBBS … Western Canadian Shippers' Coalition posted June meetings with Conservative MPs DAN ALBAS, PHILIP LAWRENCE and RAQUEL DANCHO … Grain Growers of Canada posted a June 17 meeting with Liberal MP EMMA HARRISON. BRUCE HARTLEY registered to lobby on behalf of PCL Construction … MARK REDER registered for West Coast Reduction … MAURICE RIOUX registered for Winnipeg Airports Authority … SARAH GOODMAN registered for Nestlé Canada. Send Playbookers tips to canadaplaybook@ PROZONE For Pro subscribers, our latest policy newsletter from MIKE BLANCHFIELD. From ZACK COLMAN: GOP megabill draws jeers from clean energy sectors, praise from fossil fuel backers. In other Pro headlines: — Here's what passed in the megabill for tech. — Europe's top CEOs ask EU to pause AI Act. — Trump's science guidelines could amplify climate skeptics. — Pro Analysis: About Changes to 'De Minimis' Under Trump. — Libertarians seek partnership with Elon Musk. TRIVIA Thursday's answer: Lord HUGH MACMILLAN led a royal commission to study 'the organization and working of our entire banking and monetary system.' Based on its recommendations, the Bank of Canada Act received royal assent July 3, 1934. Props to ROBERT MCDOUGALL, MALCOLM MCKAY, MARCEL MARCOTTE, ELIZABETH BURN, DARRYL DAMUDE, RAY DEL BIANCO, JOHN PEPPER and MARTIN SPIELAUER. Friday's question: Name the 7-foot-tall guest with the unkempt beard who attended the 2022 July 4 bash at Lornado. Answer to canadaplaybook@
UPI
2 hours ago
- UPI
U.S. sanctions 7 senior leaders at Hezbollah-linked Al-Qard Al-Hasan
Debris lies at the site of a damaged branch of Al-Qard al-Hasan, a financial institution linked to Lebanon's Hezbollah in the aftermath of Israeli airstrikes on Sunday that hit several branches of the institution, in Beirut suburbs, Lebanon, on Monday, Oct. 21, 2024. File Photo by Fadel Itani/ UPI | License Photo July 4 (UPI) -- The United States has sanctioned seven senior officials and one firm linked to Al-Qard Al-Hasan, a U.S.-designated, Hezbollah-controlled financial institution that came under attack last fall during Israel's war against the Iran-proxy militia in Lebanon. Thursday's sanctions are the latest in a series by the U.S. Treasury targeting Hezbollah and follow U.S. actions against various revenue-generating operations of the militia during Israel's war against Hamas, another Iran-backed group, in Gaza, which began in October 2023. Al-Qard Al-Hasan was blacklisted by the U.S. Treasury in July 2007, and its group of so-called shadow bankers in Lebanon was sanctioned in 2021. On Thursday, the Treasury sanctioned Nehme Ahmad Jamil, 54, and his Tashilat SARL company he co-owns with Ahmad Mohamad Yazbeck, who was among the shadow bankers designated nearly five years ago. Other senior officers at Al-Qard Al-Hasan sanctioned Thursday include Issa Hussein Kassir, 47, Samer Hasan Fawaz, 50, Imad Mohamad Bezz, 47, Ali Mohamad Karnib, 38, Ali Ahmad Krisht, 47, and Mohammed Suleiman Badir, 49. According to the U.S. Treasury, these designations aim to disrupt Hezbollah's sanctions-evasion schemes and help the Lebanese government curb the group's influence. "Through their roles at AQAH, these officials sought to obfuscate Hezbollah's interest in seemingly legitimate transactions at Lebanese financial institutions, exposing these banks to significant AML/CFT risk while allowing Hezbollah to funnel money for its own benefit," Deputy Secretary Michael Faulkender said in a statement. "As Hezbollah seeks money to rebuild its operations, Treasury remains strongly committed to dismantling the group's financial infrastructure and limiting its ability to reconstitute itself." Hezbollah became involved in the Israel-Gaza war a day after it began, launching rockets into northern Israel. In October, with much of Gaza destroyed and tens of thousands of Palestinians killed, Israel intensified its attacks against Hezbollah in Lebanon, launching ground and artillery operations, seeking to eradicate the militant group in order to prevent it from further attacking Israel. Among its targets was Al-Qard Al-Hasan, with dozens of its branches destroyed in Beirut's southern suburbs and southern and eastern Lebanon.
Hamilton Spectator
2 hours ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Second-generation Canadians weigh the cost of carrying on the family business – and their parents' legacy
In the corner of her family's downtown Toronto restaurant, Jeanette Liu's young son eats a plate of chili chicken as customers gather around tables and servers bustle across the floor. Her son spending the summer at Yueh Tung is 'full circle' for Liu, whose own childhood memories are flooded with the sound of clattering dishes and the smell of her parents' cooking in that very space for decades. She also remembers her parents' gruelling 15-hour days as they proudly served customers who lined up out the door, chasing what she describes as their 'Canadian dream' after they moved to Toronto from India in the early 1980s. 'My dad worked seven days a week. He only took one day off during Christmas Day, only for the morning, and then he would go right back into work by himself to prep for the next day,' Liu recalled. Yueh Tung quickly became a place where members of their community could enjoy traditional Chinese cooking with Indian flavours, she said. Liu and her sister Joanna decided to fully inherit the restaurant six months ago, not only so their parents could retire but so they wouldn't have to face the fallout of U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs, the rising cost of running a small business and changes in public dining habits. All of those factors have made it difficult to sustain their Canadian dream from decades ago, she said. Amid the economic uncertainty, second-generation immigrant business owners like Liu say they're grappling with how they can carry on their parents' legacy – and what it could cost them. 'We didn't want them to retire knowing that everything that they built and put all of their hard work into ended in this way,' Liu said. 'It's really difficult. Rent has gone up, inventory has gone up, groceries have gone up and you can only increase your menu so much without having your customers get sticker shock.' Alan Liu, who has no relation to Jeanette Liu, is the owner of Salad King, a Thai restaurant with two locations in Toronto's downtown. His family moved to Canada from Hong Kong in 1990 in search of new opportunity, and his parents soon took ownership of the restaurant before passing it on to him in 2010. Due to the impact of tariffs, Liu said his food costs over the past few months have gone up 'much faster than we've ever seen.' He predicted his cost for chicken will likely go up by as much as 50 per cent by the end of summer. 'Looking at a second-generation business you kind of have to go, 'OK, so this is what we're good at. This is what we love doing and we've been doing this for 35 years. But the market is changing,'' he said. 'Is this a temporary change? Is this long-term change? And how are we going to survive beyond that?' He prides himself on keeping the restaurant affordable for families and students but said in addition to tariff impacts, people's eating habits have changed since the COVID-19 pandemic. More people are working from home and they are generally eating out less and reducing their spending, he said. In the two decades his parents ran Salad King, he said they never experienced this level of economic precarity. They weathered recessions and even a partial building collapse the year he took over, he said, but nothing like this. The whole thing has him feeling 'punch drunk,' Liu said. 'It means you've been punched so many times in the head that you no longer feel anything. You're basically perpetually stunned and perpetually in survival mode.' Family-run restaurants aren't the only ones feeling the pinch of the current economic climate. Maria Cronk, who inherited a Kingston, Ont., boutique from her mother, said one of her suppliers has raised their prices because of tariffs and she expects to see others do so in the future. 'I think that our consumers are at their limits for what they want to pay,' Cronk said, speaking from the back storeroom of Fancy That. She also noted that some clothing lines have told her they don't have production plans for next spring because they can't afford it. Cronk's mother immigrated to Canada from Sweden in the early 1970s and opened the store. Cronk took over after her mother became ill, and now her own daughters have become involved. Continuing a family business — and passing it on — means going through all sorts of ups and downs, said Cronk. But what makes it worth it, she said, is the hard work and love her family has poured into it. 'I'm so proud of what my mother started with and what I've been able to create on my own, even without her,' said Cronk. 'It's not about the money. It's about building this community of people.' Back at Yueh Tung, Jeanette Liu cashes out customers and wraps takeout orders, while her sister Joanna fires a wok in the kitchen and makes plates of noodles. 'I feel like my parents always just told me — and it's very true of immigrant culture — you put your heads down and you work,' Liu said. Just two months ago, the restaurant was on the brink of closure. They took to social media for 'one last push,' and Yueh Tung has had more diners since, which she hopes will last. Yueh Tung is not just a restaurant – it's symbolic of their parents' sacrifice and the community they found in Canada, Jeanette said. 'Carrying on the legacy was really the crux of everything having to do with us taking over the restaurant,' she said. Yueh Tung has been the eighth member of their family, said Liu, who grew up with four siblings. 'My hope is that when I bring my dad back in, when my mom comes back in to dine as guests, they will be able to really sit and feel everything that they put into this restaurant and receive it back.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 4, 2025.
