At least 10,000 people were killed during the Tiananmen Square massacre on June 4, 1989 a secret British diplomatic cable has alleged, citing a source within the Chinese communist regime.

Square massacre, in which the regime sent tanks and troops to gun down its own unarmed students and citizens demanding basic freedoms.

More prominently, the Beijing-based unit became infamous for taking part in the bloody massacre on Tiananmen Square. A quarter century after Tiananmen, however, the 27th Army Group is no more.

Lights were switched off, candles were lit and held up, and a Tiananmen Square massacre video was played on the podium.

BEIJING—China tightened access to Tiananmen Square in central Beijing on Sunday, the anniversary of the military massacre of 1989 pro-democracy protests that left a still-unknown number of people dead and discussions and commemorations forbidden within

Chinese democracy activists attend an event about the Tiananmen Square massacre in New York on June 2. (Larry Ong/Epoch Times) For some, it has a little.

Campaign for Uyghurs founder Rushan Abbas speaks during an event commemorating the Tiananmen Square Massacre that happened in China on June 4, 1989, at the Victims of Communism Memorial in Washington on June 4, 2025.

Canadian officials in Beijing during the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre had stark words about the bloody crackdown, according to cables sent back to Ottawa at the time that were recently obtained by Blacklock's Reporter.

“Gao Zhisheng is a voice of conscience and a symbol of moral courage in the face of injustice,” said event host Feng Congde, who was a student leader and survivor of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre.

The comments came as the Eastern Hemisphere entered June 4—the anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party’s brutal massacre of thousands of peaceful pro-democracy demonstrators in Tiananmen Square on June 4, 1989.

It surpasses the purge following the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, when Beijing ousted Zhao Ziyang, then-general secretary, along with another Politburo member who showed sympathy for pro-democracy student protesters.

She noted the Transition Institute created a compilation of writings by Dai Qing, a freelance journalist and critic of the CCP, who publicly denounced the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, quit the CCP, and was later imprisoned for 10 months.

Candles at a candlelight vigil mourning the victims of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre in Washington on June 2, 2023.

David Yu, executive director of the June 4th Massacre Memorial Association, speaks during an event commemorating the Tiananmen Square massacre that happened in China on June 4, 1989, at the Victims of Communism Memorial in Washington on June 4, 2025.

This signals a zero-tolerance policy toward any reference to the Tiananmen Square Massacre. Political analyst Sun Li, based in Beijing, said the Tiananmen Square Massacre remains a deep wound in China’s modern political history.

Army veteran, and survivor of the Tiananmen Square massacre Capt. James Fanell, U.S. Navy (Ret.) – Former chief of intelligence and information operations for the U.S.

Lu Buxuan, once a promising Beijing University student, who was at Tiananmen Square on June 4, 1989, ended up becoming the owner of a butcher shop.

Overseas Chinese website Boxun.com reported that Chinese authorities tried to keep his death under wraps, and hurried to have his body cremated before Tuesday, the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre on June 4, 1989.

The night of June 3, Wang said he and his wife went to Tiananmen Square and left after 10 p.m., returning to their home near the gate tower of Yongdingmen, a seven to eight minute bike ride to Tiananmen Square.

Hundreds of people gather at Portsmouth Square in San Francisco on June 3, 2025, to attend a candlelight vigil in memory of the Tiananmen Square Massacre victims.

Square massacre.

'Sensitive Date' The unidentified "sensitive date" appears to match the description of June 4, the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre.

Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), House Foreign Affairs Committee’s vice chair, cited the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989 when asked about the incident.

Drawing from his own experience after editing a book on the Tiananmen Square massacre, Jiang Pinchao shed light on how far the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is willing to go to silence dissent within and beyond China's borders.

Students, retirees, workers, pastors, journalists, and families gathered in solemn remembrance of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre. It was peaceful, dignified, deeply human. And it was uniquely Hong Kong. That era is now over.

A graduate of the elite Peking University, Jin converted to Christianity after witnessing the 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre, a spokesperson for the church said.

Square massacre Topic: “The CCP’s Biowarfare Program’s Mission, Innovations and Operations” Dr.

Political Reform Many Chinese believe that the first step for pushing forward political reform is removing the burden of the Tiananmen Square massacre.

It refuses to answer questions on topics the Chinese regime doesn't normally discuss, such as the Tiananmen Square Massacre and the persecution of Falun Gong.

Participants at the 180,000-strong Tiananmen Square Massacre Candlelight Vigil in Hong Kong hold up candles and posters, commemorating the victims.