Separatists in Catalonia accuse Spain of ‘massive’ espionage.

Catalan separatists accused Spain of spying on dozens of its leaders’ mobile phones with Pegasus malware on Monday, citing data provided in a report by a Canadian organization.

At least 65 Catalan separatists, including the region’s current leader, were targeted, according to a report by the Citizen Lab research center at the University of Toronto.

Pegasus spyware, produced by Israel’s NSO Group, was believed to have been planted on their phones, according to the report.

Between 2017 and 2020, nearly all of the phones were allegedly hacked. In Spain, the type of espionage that Madrid is accused of is unlawful.

Ex-Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont tweeted, “We have been spied on in a massive and unlawful manner with software that only states can possess.”

He continued, “Politicians, attorneys, and activists are all victims of the Spanish state’s dirty war.”

Members of the EU and Catalan parliaments, as well as members of independent civil society organizations, were targeted. They included current Catalan leader Pere Aragones, who was deputy leader of the region at the time, ex-regional leaders Quim Torra and Artur Mas, as well as members of the EU and Catalan parliaments.

Puigdemont, who fled to Belgium after the region attempted to seek independence through a referendum in 2017, was not among those targeted, according to Citizen Lab, but numerous others close to him were, including his wife.

Requests for information from the Spanish government were ignored.