Moroccan Intelligence Used Israeli Pegasus Spyware on Journalists, Officials: Report

Morocco's domestic intelligence agency, the Direction Générale de la Surveillance du Territoire (DGST), has allegedly been using Israeli-made Pegasus spyware for years, according to a former agent.

The whistleblower, known by the pseudonym "Safir," served nearly a decade within the DGST. His detailed testimony, corroborated by leaked emails, internal training materials, Pegasus target logs, and analysis from Amnesty International's Security Lab, suggests the spyware was used against journalists, human rights defenders, politicians, and security officials within Morocco and across Europe.

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Millions of dollars are nothing to the Emirates. The Emirates buys it and shares it with the intelligence services of friendly countries. Roughly, it's like Netflix: a friend pays for a subscription, and others use the account.

Safir recounted that Moroccan intelligence officers were first introduced to Pegasus in 2017 during a closed demonstration in Rabat by representatives of Israel's NSO Group. The officers were reportedly impressed by the software's ability to remotely hack phones without physical access, allowing operators to access emails, messages, photos, and even activate the device's microphone and camera.

This expensive surveillance tool was allegedly supplied through the United Arab Emirates (UAE). "Millions of dollars are nothing to the Emirates," Safir stated. "The Emirates buys it and shares it with the intelligence services of friendly countries. Roughly, it's like Netflix: a friend pays for a subscription, and others use the account." Safir emphasized that Pegasus was reserved for the highest-priority targets, calling it "the monster's weapon."

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It was the monster's weapon.