Surveillance of Germany: Federal Prosecutor's office gets involved in the NSA data scandal

By Jörg Schindler

Central NSA offices in Fort Meade: spy programs are a case for German jurisprudence

According to SPIEGEL's sources, surveillance by the the American spy service NSA has now also come to the attention of the Federal Prosecutor's office. Information is being gathered in Karlsruhe about the American and British spy programs – a suit against unknown parties has already been filed.

Berlin – the spy affair involving the American spy service NSA has now reached the Federal Prosecutor's office. Located in Karlsruhe and responsible for criminal acts against domestic security, according to SPIEGEL sources the agency is investigating whether the systematic data surveillance of German citizens is a crime involving national security.

A spokeswoman for the Federal Prosecutor's office confirmed that all available and relevant information about the Prism, Tempora, and Boundless Informant is currently being evaluated. An attempt is being made to construct a "reliable basis in fact". Whether and when the Federal Prosecutor may issue a formal finding is a question that remains open.

However, she stated that even now "criminal prosecutation can be expected in this context." According to SPIEGEL sources, one such suit has already been filed: A resident of Hessen filed suit against unknown parties this week with the State Attorney in Giessen. That makes the NSA scandal an official matter for the German judiciary for the first time.

According to SPIEGEL sources, the surveillance of Germany by the US spy service NSA is more extensive than heretofore assumed. Secret NSA documents reveal that the agency systematically inspects and store a large part of telephone and Internet connection data. According to internal statistics at the spy agency, about 500 million communications connections are monitored in the Federal Republic of Germany each month. The NSA has categorized Germany as a target.

SPIEGEL also reports that the NSA has bugged EU representatives and infiltrated computer systems. The disclosures about the NSA Prism program and the British Tempora program originated from material gathered by whistleblower Edward Snowden.

Videoconference with London on Tempora

The British government, whose spy service Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) hosts the data vacuum cleaner Tempora that is aimed at Germany, has in the meantime deviated from their strict policy of silence. In the past week, London responded to a request for information from the German government with the sparse note that communications service operations are never the subject of open discussion. Anyone who wants to know something should contact the British spy service directly – at the appropriate level.

In particular Minister of Justice Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger seemed rather taken aback. "Three measly lines", said the FDP party member, are not enough to patch up a scandal of these dimensions.

Now the Foreign Office of the federal government has received an invitation from the Brits to a video conference to be held tomorrow at 4 PM in the British Embassy in Berlin. According to SPIEGEL sources, the Germans will be represented by experts from the Ministries of the Interior and Justice, the Foreign Office, and the Federal Communications Service, among others. In light of the latest revelations, it's said internally, hard questions can be anticipated.

534 words. My invoice will be in the mail. After all the discussion, I went with "target" for "Angriffsziel". In context it really is the best translation.