Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk claimed on Tuesday that he possessed documents proving that state agencies under the previous government illegally used the powerful Pegasus spyware.
Tusk made the statement during a briefing with his political opponent President Andrzej Duda. The prime minister claims that Pegasus has been used by the government headed by the Law and Justice (PiS) party, which Duda supports.
I have a disclosed document at the moment, but this is only a sample of the documents that are at your disposal, Mr. President.
Tusk came to power in December after winning elections in October, marking the end of eight years of rule by the Law and Justice party, which the European Union accused of undermining democratic norms.
The new parliament set up a special commission to investigate who used Pegasus and against whom during the Law and Justice years of power.
“The list of victims of these practices is unfortunately very long.”
The prime minister stated that he had asked the justice minister and the attorney general to provide Duda with a set of documents that “confirm 100 per cent the purchase and use of Pegasus in a legal and illegal manner.”
Pegasus, the spyware created by Israeli group NSO, allegedly grants its operators full access to a mobile device, allowing them to extract passwords, photos, messages, contacts and browsing history, as well as activate the microphone and camera for real-time eavesdropping.
NSO claimed it only sold its spyware to legitimate government law enforcement and intelligence agencies vetted by the Israeli Ministry of Defence for use against terrorists and criminals. However, evidence has emerged that human rights defenders and politicians are being targeted by governments around the world.
