Iranian Spy in German Army Sentenced to Nearly Seven Years in Prison
A high court in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate has sentenced a translator for the German military to six years and ten months in prison. This individual, along with his wife, provided German military information to Iran over a period of four years.
Abdulhamid S., an Afghan-born translator for the German armed forces (Bundeswehr), reportedly sold classified German military information to the intelligence and espionage organizations of the Islamic Republic of Iran in cooperation with his wife.
The high court of Rhineland-Palatinate in the city of Koblenz sentenced the individual to six years and 10 months in prison on charges of espionage on Monday, April 23, in a closed-door session.
The same court sentenced the wife of the former German army translator to 10 months in prison. The sentences issued by the aforementioned court are not yet final.
According to the court’s ruling, Abdulhamid S., the former German army translator, has been convicted of “treason.” Abdulhamid S. was employed as a civilian collaborator by the German army.
Four Years of Espionage
Based on published information, Abdulhamid S. provided classified and military German information to one of the intelligence organizations of the Islamic Republic of Iran from the end of January 2013 to early February 2017, spanning four years.
The former German army translator reportedly sold military information to Iranian intelligence on at least eight occasions. He met with Iranian intelligence officials in various European cities to provide this information.
Abdulhamid S.’s wife was also aware of her husband’s cooperation with Iranian intelligence organizations from 2016 onwards and arranged the logistics for his travel to various European countries.
The German news outlet N-TV reported that the former German army translator provided military maps of the German armed forces as well as analyses from the German Defense Ministry concerning certain countries to Iranian officials.
In exchange for selling this information, Abdulhamid S. received over 34,000 euros from Iran. The German military became suspicious of this individual’s activities and arrested him in January of the previous year.
The court proceedings examining the charges against Abdulhamid S. began on January 20 of the current year in the city of Koblenz. It is reported that Abdulhamid S. and his wife confessed to spying for Iran, and this confession resulted in reduced sentences for both.
Source: DW
