European Parliament committee meets with gov't, opposition figures in Greece on wiretap scandal probe

By Anadolu Agency Staff

ANKARA (AA) - An inquiry committee from the European Parliament met with senior Greek officials and opposition figures on Thursday for further questions on a surveillance scandal that led to senior resignations earlier this year.

In the meeting with Cabinet Minister George Gerapetridis, members of the PEGA committee into Pegasus and other spyware asked why Nikos Androulakis, the leader of the opposition PASOK-KINAL party, was wiretapped, the commission said on Twitter.

Gerapetridis also received a question on why and how the surveillance data was deleted and whether the government attempted to find out where the illicit spyware used in Greece came from, it added.

Also on the agenda were matters related to transparency in relationships between public authorities and private companies, freedom of the press and intimidation lawsuits, and the role of state advertisement funding for media.

The commission also met with deputies from the SYRIZA-PS, PASOK-KINAL, and KKE opposition parties to discuss state contracts for surveillance and police software under the current government and previous ones, as well as the rule of law, media freedom, and legislative reform.

- Surveillance scandal

On Aug. 8, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis acknowledged that Androulakis, the leader of PASOK, was wiretapped by the country's intelligence agency. However, Mitsotakis denied knowledge of the operation.

The scandal unfolded on Aug. 4 when Panagiotis Kontoleon, the head of the National Intelligence Service (EYP), told a parliamentary committee that the agency had been spying on Thanasis Koukakis, a journalist.

The European Commission and European Parliament have been closely monitoring developments related to the scandal.