Thursday, November 12, 2015

Germany ‘spied’ on French foreign minister

Germany’s BND foreign intelligence service spied on French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, as well as on a German diplomat in a possible violation of the country’s constitution, a German radio station reported on Wednesday.

Officials firmly declined to comment on the report, but the parliamentary committee that oversees intelligence agencies was due to meet later in the day with the issue to be discussed.

The report by the Berlin-based rbb Inforadio was the latest twist in a growing scandal over the activities of Germany’s BND stemming from revelations in 2013 by US National Security Agency (NSA) contractor Edward Snowden.

Without identifying its sources, rbb reported that the BND had spied on Fabius, as well as other targets at the International Criminal Court in the Hague, the World Health Organisation, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation and firms in the United States.

The intelligence agency also allegedly monitored German national Hansjoerg Haber, who was head of the EU’s observer mission in Georgia from 2008 to 2011 before going on to become a senior diplomat in Brussels. He is now head of the EU’s mission in Turkey and married to a state secretary in the interior ministry.

Under Germany’s constitution, the country is not allowed to spy on its own citizens. Privacy is a sensitive issue in Germany due to extensive surveillance by Communist East Germany’s Stasi secret police and by the Nazi era Gestapo.

The allegations come nearly two years after Snowden revealed widespread US surveillance in Germany, including bugging Chancellor Angela Merkel’s mobile phone. Since then a scandal has erupted over the BND’s own activities and how much it assisted the NSA.

An oversight committee is scrutinising BND activity, especially after revelations earlier this year that it indirectly helped the NSA spy on European firms such as Airbus.

Last month, German Justice Minister Heiko Maas called for tighter controls on the BND after reports that its spies had targeted embassies of allied countries without the government’s express permission.
(FRANCE 24 with REUTERS)

  france24.com
12/11/15
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1 comment :

  1. Le diplomate allemand de haut niveau, chef de la mission de l’Union européenne en Turquie Hansjörg Haber, a été mis sur écoute par les services de renseignement extérieur allemands (BND), sans autorisation de la commission spéciale du parlement du pays. Les détails de cette histoire sont révélés par l’édition Die Welt...

    M.Haber, qui travaille au ministère allemand des Affaires étrangères depuis 1984, a été nommé chef de la mission de surveillance de l'Union européenne en Géorgie lors du conflit de 2008. Aujourd'hui, M.Haber représente l'Union européenne en Turquie. Sa femme, Emily Haber est secrétaire d'Etat au ministère allemand des Affaires intérieures.

    Le BND fonctionne en coopération avec le gouvernement allemand, et il a des méthodes variées d'espionnage à sa disposition. Mais les citoyens allemands sont protégés par la constitution du pays, où la confidentialité des données personnelles est clairement mentionnée.

    M.Haber est citoyen allemand, donc il ne peut être placé sous surveillance qu'après une autorisation de la commission parlementaire G-10 qui contrôle le fonctionnement des services spéciaux. Selon les données de Die Welt, la demande pour une telle autorisation n'a été jamais déposée, ce qui signifie qu'elle n'a jamais pu être reçue...........http://sptnkne.ws/acXx
    12/11/15

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