In an attempt to limit the political damage caused by the accusations, Mitsotakis said Monday in a televised address to the nation that although the surveillance operation was legal and everything was done in accordance with the law, it was wrong. I didn't know about it, and I would never allow it. Mitsotakis said that the Greek intelligence service underestimated the political dimension of this action, and that it should never have happened. The scandal began last week when Nikos Androulakis was told by the European Parliament that he had been informed of an attempt to hack into his mobile phone with surveillance software.
He then filed a complaint with the supreme court of Greece over his cell phone.
In addition to the attempted hack, the Greek prime minister confirmed that the phone had been intercepted by Greece's National Intelligence Service EYP over a three month period in 2021, according to an investigation by the Greek prime minister. The Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said he didn't know about the phone tapping. I never expected the Greek government to spy on me with the darkest practices, Androulakis said in a televised address Friday. According to a statement from Mitsotakis' office, the head of EYP, resigned Friday after mistaken actions found during lawful wiretapping procedures. Androulakis was elected as the leader of the third-largest party in the Greek parliament, the centrist PASOK, in December 2021. He has urged the Greek parliament to establish an investigative committee to look into potential political responsibilities. The main opposition party leftist Syriza has launched a fierce attack on the government referring to a Greek Watergate moment. Greece is going to have an election year in 2023. The legislation passed when the current government took office is passed to the EYP, which reports directly to the prime minister's office. During the Monday address, Mitsotakis also announced measures to strengthen the legal framework, monitoring and transparency in the EYP, and said that EYP's contribution is crucial and cannot be overshadowed by an error like this.