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Europe

Spain reopens inquiry into Pegasus spyware case following France's request to collaborate on a similar case

In 2022, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and three Spanish ministers were targeted by Pegasus spyware

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A Spanish judge has reopened a probe into the suspected spying on the cellphone of Spain’s prime minister after receiving a request to collaborate with a similar investigation in France.

The judge with Spain’s National Court said Tuesday there is reason to believe that the new information provided by France can "allow the investigations to advance."

Both probes concern the alleged use of Pegasus spyware developed by the Israeli NSO Group. The spyware silently infiltrates phones or other devices to harvest data and potentially spy on their owners. NSO asserts that it is only made available to governments for fighting terrorism and other security threats.

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Pegasus has been used to target more than 1,000 people across 50 countries, including activists and journalists, according to security researchers and a 2021 global media investigation.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez of Spain

A probe into the suspected spying on Spain's prime minister's cellphone has been reopened in Spain's National Court after the French reached out for collaboration on a similar case. Pictured: Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is pictured here at a meeting with the prime minister of Portugal on April 15, 2024. (Francesco Militello Mirto/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Spain announced in May 2022 that Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and three of his ministers, including the ministers of defense and interior, had been targeted by Pegasus spyware. The resulting judicial probe was provisionally shelved when it failed to get results.

French President Emmanuel Macron and several of his ministers have also been allegedly targeted by Pegasus.

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In a separate case of alleged Pegasus spying in Spain, Spain’s government has admitted to using it to hack phones of leading Catalan separatists.