Spanish PM’s Phone Hacked Amid Moroccan Spy Network Discovery

3 May 2022 – byPrince@Bladi · 2 min read

Spain discovered a network of Moroccan secret agents in La Rioja in May 2021, the same month during which the mobile phones of Pedro Sanchez and Margarita Robles were the subject of espionage with Pegasus. A period that also coincides with the entry into Spain of Brahim Ghali, the leader of the Polisario Front.

The National Cryptology Center (CCN) of the National Intelligence Center (CNI) sent two technical reports to the government on May 1 to confirm the hacking of the mobile phones of Pedro Sanchez and his Defense Minister. At a press conference on Monday at the Moncloa, the Minister of the Presidency, Félix Bolaños, indicated that the mobile phones of Sanchez and Robles were the subject of espionage using the Israeli software Pegasus in May for the former and June 2021 for the latter, reports Ok Diario.

The in-depth analysis of the two devices by the CCN revealed that a significant amount of data (2.6 GB in May and 130 MB in June 2021) was extracted from the phone of the Spanish Prime Minister, and 9 MB from that of the Defense Minister. The prosecutor has already filed a complaint against X with the High Court, which is competent to investigate this matter, Bolaños announced.

To read: Spanish PM and Defense Minister’s Phones Hacked with Pegasus Spyware, Morocco Suspected

The month of May 2021 when Sanchez’s phone was hacked curiously coincides with the arrival of Brahim Ghali, the leader of the Polisario Front, in Spain, which led to a serious diplomatic crisis with Morocco, which recalled its ambassador to Madrid, Karima Benyaich, and cut off all contact with Spain. At that time, Morocco deployed several intelligence agents to Logroño to closely monitor Ghali, admitted to the San Pedro hospital in the city, the same source believes, specifying that at least two of these agents stayed in a hotel on Avenida Gran Vía Juan Carlos I.

All the movements of the Moroccan agents were monitored by the counterintelligence division of the CNI, whose mission is to detect and neutralize the operations of foreign intelligence services against Spain. From a well-informed source, the CNI has the means to determine the exact origin of the espionage. But in no case will it reveal the perpetrator to avoid any diplomatic conflict with Morocco, Russia, China or Cuba, countries that hold the Pegasus software.

Category: Spain

Keywords:

Spain Espionage