Germany is shocked by a massive spying scandal involving the former head of its foreign intelligence agency, the BND.
August Hanning headed the spying agency from 1998 to 2005 but was illegally provided about 2,000 documents, some classified, by a paid BND informant, according to the German Federal Prosecutor’s Office.
‘Hanning is strongly suspected of treasonous espionage, obtaining state secrets, attempted treason and espionage.’
The stunning allegations constitute the greatest spying breach since the end of the Cold War, according to Politico.
Hanning is accused of using the documents in order to compile an analysis for a foreign spy service.
The foreign country involved was not identified, and it is unclear whether it ever received that analysis.
Hanning also allegedly provided political information to a representative of the foreign spy agency.
A senior security lawmaker said the arrest was unprecedented and would likely damage the nation’s relations with other countries’ intelligence agencies.
“Hanning is strongly suspected of treasonous espionage, obtaining state secrets, attempted treason and espionage,” reads a statement from the prosecutor’s office.
A former BND office manager was also arrested for his alleged part in the scheme. Both will appear in court before a judge at the Federal Court of Justice.
Some of the documents related to the Iranian nuclear program as well as the Russian military, according to one local news source. However, a German official granted anonymity said that the case involved neither the Chinese nor the Russian intelligence agencies.
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The German spy agency has suffered other damaging espionage scandals that have eroded faith in the BND.
“For the BND and for me, there can be no compromises when it comes to internal security,” said current BND chief Martin Jäger in a statement.
“None of my goals, none of my priorities are called into question by this incident,” he added.
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Germany, Spying, Espionage, Treason, Politics
