Sacking Of German Domestic Intelligence Chief Punishment For 'Truth'
Fahad Shabbir (@FahadShabbir) Published September 20, 2018 | 10:46 AM
German Chancellor Angela Merkel's decision to sack domestic intelligence chief and security expert Hans-Georg Maassen was a punishment designed to hide the "truth" about risks of uncontrolled immigration, lawmakers and political commentators told Sputnik.
BRUSSELS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 20th September, 2018) German Chancellor Angela Merkel's decision to sack domestic intelligence chief and security expert Hans-Georg Maassen was a punishment designed to hide the "truth" about risks of uncontrolled immigration, lawmakers and political commentators told Sputnik.
Maassen was removed from his job at the helm of the Federal Office for Constitutional Protection (BfV) on Tuesday after suggesting that a viral video apparently showing foreigners being hounded by far-right protesters in the city of Chemnitz might have been fake.
Maassen's sacking was demanded by Merkel's coalition partners in the Social Democrat Party. He was eventually given a higher position of a state secretary under Interior Minister Horst Seehofer, a known critic of the chancellor's migration policy.
"The political decision of punishing Mr. Maassen is unacceptable and spreading fake news about non-existent aggression in the city of Chemnitz is a cheap trick by the federal government to hide the worsening security situation in Germany," Joerg Meuthen, federal spokesman for the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, told Sputnik.
Meuthen said Maassen was right in denying migrant hunts in the eastern German city after the fatal stabbing of a German man in a brawl with alleged immigrants and the arrests of an Iraqi and a Syrian.
The AfD lawmaker claimed they were to be expelled from Germany long ago but stayed because authorities had failed to follow through on their repatriation policy.
Dietmar Bartsch, the parliamentary group leader for the left-wing Die Linke party, told Sputnik the former spy chief's new job was a sinecure where he would have nothing to do.
Marc Felix Serrao, a political commentator and Berlin correspondent for the Swiss Neue Zuercher Zeitung, described to Sputnik Merkel's decision as "culmination of a smear campaign."
"He made an unfortunate statement. That's all. All those who were screaming for resignation are in error. Since taking office in security, Maassen had built an excellent reputation. Hans-Georg Maassen was one of the first in the political machinery of the Federal Republic to warn against the effects of massive and uncontrolled immigration," Serrao said.
The row over alleged violence in Chemnitz, following a month of protests, shows continued divisions on migration in Germany after Merkel announced her open-door asylum policy in 2015. It remains a pressing issue ahead of October polls in Bavaria, the country's largest state.
Related Topics
Recent Stories
Tennis: ATP Barcelona Open results - 1st update
Swiatek's perfect 10 in Stuttgart as Vondrousova stuns Sabalenka
Arandu's roads closed due to flooding
Oil tanker catches fire in Islamabad’s Blue Area
Pakistan committed to ensure safety of foreign nationals: FO
Tennis: WTA Stuttgart results - 1st update
Four passengers injured as train hit an empty vehicle
Over- speeding bus crushed to death two bike riders
Turkey's Freedom Flotilla ready to set sail for Gaza
French teen dies from heart failure after knife attack near school
Iranians appear unfazed by Isfahan blasts
UAF celebrates Int'l Chinese Language Day
More Stories From World
-
Togo lawmakers approve contested political reform
6 hours ago -
NATO must choose 'whether we indeed are allies': Zelensky
6 hours ago -
US House to vote on Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan aid package
6 hours ago -
Calls for calm after reported Israeli strike on Iran
6 hours ago -
IMF calls on EU to deepen single market integration to boost growth
6 hours ago -
Second Ecuadoran mayor killed ahead of anti-crime referendum: police
6 hours ago
-
Oil, gas drilling blocked in Alaska wilds as Biden seeks green cred
7 hours ago -
Man sets self on fire outside Trump trial
7 hours ago -
Turkey's Freedom Flotilla ready to set sail for Gaza
9 hours ago -
French teen dies from heart failure after knife attack near school
9 hours ago -
Iranians appear unfazed by Isfahan blasts
9 hours ago -
Ecuador mayor killed ahead of anti-crime referendum: police
9 hours ago