The trial investigating Greece’s illegal surveillance operations between 2020 and 2022 took an unexpected turn on Monday when two of the country’s most influential former officials publicly criticized the government’s handling of the affair. Former prime minister Kostas Karamanlis and former deputy prime minister Evangelos Venizelos - both long-established figures in Greek politics - issued unusually direct warnings about the state of the rule of law. Their remarks added new pressure on Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, whose administration has been widely associated with the wiretapping scandal and accused of attempting to conceal its extent.
Karamanlis delivered his comments at an event marking the 15th anniversary of the Athens newspaper Demokratia. Though typically restrained in public life, he spoke with striking clarity about the erosion of judicial independence. He said that the credibility of the justice system is the foundation of democratic trust, and warned that in recent years a «shadow of doubt» has spread across European societies - a growing perception that justice systems are vulnerable to political pressure and manipulation. Even the suspicion of interference, he argued, is enough to damage democratic cohesion. According to Karamanlis, the investigation into Greece’s surveillance scandal did little to reassure the public. He noted that key questions remain unanswered regarding the legality and purpose of the wiretaps, the authorizations behind them and their broader implications. Although political tensions around the issue have faded, he said the public’s skepticism has not.
Venizelos echoed these concerns, speaking at the same anniversary event. He pointed to what he described as «remarkable revelations» emerging from the ongoing trial in Athens, stressing that the lower court currently handling the case lacks the jurisdictional scope to address the deeper institutional issues exposed by the scandal.
The trial is set to continue on Tuesday with testimony from senior officials of ADAE, the Hellenic Authority for Communication Security and Privacy, the independent regulator responsible for overseeing lawful surveillance. The court examining the role of four business figures accused of participating in the development and deployment of the Predator spyware system: Yiannis Lavranos, described as the true owner of the security firm Krikel, and Felix Bitzios, Tal Dilian and Sara Hamou of Intellexa, the consortium behind Predator.
Beyond the individual defendants, however, the case has broader political implications. Evidence presented so far indicates that the National Intelligence Service (EYP) - which reports directly to the Greek prime minister - used Predator spyware, and that its personnel received training from Intellexa. These findings have deepened concerns about government involvement in the surveillance operation and about attempts to limit judicial scrutiny.
