The case of the alleged mass espionage It broke out a week ago when Citizen Lab, a Canadian cybersecurity organization, identified more than 60 people from the Catalan pro-independence orbit with their mobile phones infected between 2017 and 2020 with Israeli espionage software. pegasuswhich can only be acquired by States.
Among them were prominent leaders of the separatist movement, which irritated the separatists, who accused Madrid of being behind it and threatened to withdraw their decisive support for the central government in parliament.
According to sources close to the CNI cited by El País, there was espionage on independence leaders from the intelligence services, but “in an individualized manner” and “not indiscriminately”, and the total figure of those under surveillance was “much lower” than that reported.
The sources, who questioned “the rigor” of the Citizen Lab report, claimed that the espionage service acted “always under judicial control” of the Supreme Court of Spain.
One of the tools used was Pegasus, a system that allows you to read messages or control the telephone remotely, acquired by the CNI in the middle of the last decade for 6 million euros (6.4 million dollars), according to El País.
The CNI did not immediately respond to AFP requests for comment.
Faced with pressure from the independentists, the government of Pedro Sanchezwho has hidden behind forced secrecy in intelligence matters in order not to confirm or deny the information, announced over the weekend investigations and a parliamentary control of the intelligence services.
Some “insufficient” and “vague” promises for the Catalan independence movement, which demands the identification and resignation of those responsible.
The executive of the socialist Pedro Sánchez, a minority in parliament, depends on the support of pro-independence parties, starting with the formation CKD of the current president of Catalonia, Pere Aragonese.
The prolonged tensions between the Catalan independence movement and Spain reached their zenith in October 2017, when the separatists organized a self-determination referendum, considered illegal by the Spanish justice, and later unilaterally declared, and without success, the independence of the region.
The tensions had been diluted after the resumption in 2020 of the dialogue between the independentistas and the Sánchez government, which last year pardoned nine convicted of the events of 2017, in the name of “reconciliation”.
Source: Ambito
David William is a talented author who has made a name for himself in the world of writing. He is a professional author who writes on a wide range of topics, from general interest to opinion news. David is currently working as a writer at 24 hours worlds where he brings his unique perspective and in-depth research to his articles, making them both informative and engaging.
