Officials working in Germany’s immigration authorities pass on information about Turkish asylum seekers to the Ankara government, according to press reports. Turkish spies may have infiltrated German authorities.

Turkish asylum seekers have accused interpreters, interviewers, and security personnel at Germany’s federal immigration authority (BAMF) of passing on their personal data to media outlets friendly to the Turkish government.

A joint investigation by Der Spiegel magazine and public broadcaster ARD found several cases where those fleeing political persecution in Turkey had been named and, in some cases, defamed as terrorists in the Turkish media shortly after a hearing at BAMF or an appointment with the office.

In many cases, their locations were also revealed in newspapers and TV reports – information that those affected said could only have come from inside BAMF, since even their families did not know where they were living.

Read more: ​​​​​​Hundreds of Turkish officials seek asylum in Germany

In at least two cases, Der Spiegel reported, German domestic intelligence agencies had initiated an investigation. For its part, BAMF said that it had fired 15 freelance interpreters this year for “violations of the duty to neutrality,” though none of these were circumstances like those reported by Der Spiegel.

Hundreds of Turkish officials have sought political asylum in Germany in the face of an increasingly authoritarian crackdown in the country. In response to the report, Green party leader Cem Özdemir called for tighter security checks on interpreters.

Turkish spies

To Erkin Erdogan, it’s “obvious” that the Turkish government is spying on opposition activists across Europe, and especially in Germany, which has a Turkish community of 3 million people, around half of whom have Turkish citizenship. “I feel like the German authorities are not prepared enough to prevent such incidents,” he said. “This should be a clear warning for Germany. Turkey has a long arm in Germany. It’s an extension of the oppression in Turkey.”

He added that, since Turkey and Germany have an intelligence-sharing agreement, German authorities could warn people in Germany if they become aware that they are being targeted by Turkish agencies.