The spotlight has turned to Spain’s former spy chief, Paz Esteban, as a Barcelona court delves into the alleged utilization of Pegasus spyware for monitoring prominent Catalan separatists. The court’s move to designate Esteban as a suspect and summon her for questioning was revealed in a document released on Monday.
A report from Canada’s Citizen Lab group, disclosed last year, disclosed that more than 60 individuals associated with the Catalan separatist movement, including regional leader Pere Aragones and his predecessors, were purportedly targeted by the Israeli cyber-intelligence firm NSO Group’s Pegasus following the failed independence bid in 2017.
Facing pressure from Catalonia’s pro-independence party ERC, a vital government ally, the administration, in response, neither acknowledged the surveillance of Catalans nor divulged specifics about the parties targeted by the software, instead citing its use to monitor its own members.
The subsequent political turbulence culminated in Esteban’s dismissal in May 2022. Following this, Aragones, who lodged a complaint against Esteban and NSO Group in June 2022, received acceptance from the court on October 6, as per the document.
The investigating judge has summoned both Esteban and Aragones to provide their testimonies on December 13. Interestingly, an inquiry into the supposed use of Pegasus to spy on Spanish political figures, including Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and multiple ministers, was halted earlier this year due to a lack of cooperation from Israel.
Against the backdrop of an inconclusive election in July, the current Socialist-led government continues in a caretaker capacity, while acting Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez endeavors to secure a new term in a parliamentary vote, banking on the support of Catalonia’s two separatist parties. However, the looming possibility of a potential repeat election early next year remains a distinct possibility should the necessary support fail to materialize.
