To show you the extent of the scandal, just look at the nickname given to it by the media: the Greek Watergate, a reference to the spy scandal in the United States which led to the resignation of Nixon in 1974. For several months , the Greek intelligence services wiretapped one of the leaders of the left-wing opposition, Nikos Androulakis, head of the country’s third political party. The government tried to play down the scandal, but it escalated this summer, leading to two resignations: that of the director of intelligence and that of the secretary general of the prime minister’s office.
The head of government, Kyriakos Mitsotakis took the floor a few days later, during an address to the nation. His defence: I didn’t know. For him, this monitoring was “legal”However “unacceptable”. It should be noted that in Greece, the intelligence services have been placed under the aegis of the Prime Minister since 2019, i.e. since Mitsotakis has been in power.
The intelligence services would have spied on the leader of the opposition thanks to software with the disturbing name: “Predator”. Developed in North Macedonia, this software can infiltrate cell phones, spy on messages and read conversations. It could even activate the camera or the microphone.
The government denies having bought this software but Greek cybersecurity experts are doubtful. Predator is one of the most expensive spy software in the world.
The leader of the opposition is not the only one to have been spied on. At least two Greek investigative journalists were also victims of this surveillance. A specialist in migration issues and another who is interested in corruption cases. Two areas in which the government could have an interest in not being criticized. These journalists were heard by the prosecution of the Supreme Court on Tuesday. One of them claimed that he was not the only target of “Predator”, that other journalists and press officers are also being watched.
The state of press freedom in Greece is indeed worrying. The Greek power controls information. In the Reporters Without Borders ranking, the country has lost 38 places this year, and finds itself last in Europe and 108th out of 180 in the world. The Greek government disputed this classification in a letter addressed to RSF questioning the methodology.
This scandal has not finished shaking Greece. The opposition obtained to bring forward the return to parliament by a week. Next week a “extraordinary debate” on the case will take place. Greek Prime Minister Mitsotakis could well fall.