BERLIN: German prosecutors said Friday they had arrested three men — a Russian, a Ukrainian and an Armenian — on suspicion of spying for a foreign intelligence service.
The three men were arrested in the western city of Frankfurt on Wednesday after allegedly trying “to gather information about a Ukrainian national,” federal prosecutors said in a statement.
The men were only identified as Robert A. from Ukraine, Vardges I. from Armenia and Russian citizen Arman S.
Prosecutors did not specify which foreign secret service the men were allegedly working for, and declined to comment further when contacted by AFP.
“The three suspects were acting on behalf of a foreign intelligence service in Germany,” the statement said, adding that the trio had on June 19 “scouted a cafe in Frankfurt am Main where the target person was thought to be.”
Germany has uncovered numerous espionage cases on its soil since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
A former German intelligence officer is currently on trial in Berlin, accused of handing information to Moscow that showed Germany had access to details of Russian mercenary operations in Ukraine. He denies the charges.
Last month, a German former soldier was sentenced to three and a half years in jail for sharing secret military information with Russia in the wake of the outbreak of war in Ukraine.
Russian authorities for their part have levelled treason charges against dozens of people accused of aiding Ukraine and the West since the invasion.
Germany arrests Ukrainian, Russian on spying charges
https://arab.news/r49tt
Germany arrests Ukrainian, Russian on spying charges
- The three men were arrested in the western city of Frankfurt on Wednesday after allegedly trying “to gather information about a Ukrainian national“
- Prosecutors did not specify which foreign secret service the men were allegedly working for
Pull him off TV: Steve Bannon shuts down Sen. Lindsey Graham
- Trump’s former chief strategist called for the senator to be registered as a foreign agent
DUBAI: Former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon called on Tuesday for US Senator Lindsey Graham to be registered as a foreign agent of the Israeli government, escalating a growing conservative backlash against the senator’s vocal support for Israel.
Speaking on his podcast “War Room,” Bannon said Graham should be “pulled off of television,” adding: "This is dangerous… because you have guys like Lindsey Graham and dozens more that are doing the wrong thing.”
In a Fox News interview on Monday, Graham said: “To all the antisemites, to all the isolationists… I’m not with you, I’m with Israel, I will be with Israel to our dying day.”
Graham also urged Gulf Arab states to join military action against Iran. “What I want you to do in the Middle East, to our friends in Saudi Arabia and other places, [is] step forward and say, ‘this is my fight too, I join America, I’m publicly involved in bringing this regime down,’” he said.
In a post on X, Graham questioned the value of a US defense agreement with Saudi Arabia following the evacuation of the American embassy in Riyadh, writing: “Why should America do a defense agreement with a country like the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia that is unwilling to join a fight of mutual interest?”
Faisal Abbas, editor-in-chief of Arab News, responded to Graham’s comments in a Sky News interview, saying: “He flip flops so much, it’s actually entertaining.”
“On one hand, he says he will never set foot in Saudi Arabia. The next day, he’s here signing multimillion-dollar deals.”
“I don’t think anyone here takes him seriously,” Abbas added.
He warned Graham to be careful what he wished for: “Do you really want Saudi Arabia involved in this war putting our oil facilities at risk or do you want us stabilizing the energy markets?”
Graham pressed further, warning that inaction would carry a price. “Hopefully Gulf Cooperation Council countries will get more involved as this fight is in their backyard. If you are not willing to use your military now, when are you willing to use it?”
“Hopefully this changes soon. If not, consequences will follow.”
Graham's remarks drew sharp criticism from Bannon and others including podcast host Megyn Kelly.
She questioned on X whether Graham was overstepping his authority as a senator, writing: “When did Lindsay Graham become our president?”
Kelly also said Graham had threatened Lebanon, Cuba, Saudi Arabia, the wider Arab region, and Spain within a 24-hour period.
The problem with Graham “isn’t (just) that he’s a homicidal maniac, it’s that Trump likes and is listening to him,” she said in another post.
