Tal Dilian, the Israeli former military officer who founded Intellexa, the company behind the Predator spyware, has issued a lengthy public statement directing pointed accusations at Greek state institutions over the handling of the wiretapping scandal, speaking to greek newspaper Efimerida ton Syntakton.
Dilian, who has been convicted in a first-instance ruling, that he is appealing, opened his statement by framing his remarks as a defense of “the values of truth, justice and institutional integrity” that he described as central to Greek identity.
“We never operated any system in Greece”
At the core of his statement is a categorical denial of operational involvement. “Let me be clear: we are a technology provider, not mercenaries,” Dilian said. “We sell to government agencies in accordance with all required regulations, but we never operate the systems on their behalf.”
He said Intellexa had never operated any system in Greece and on that basis rejected statements by Justice Minister Georgios Floridis
assigning direct responsibility to “the four private individuals” before the conclusion of the judicial process. “This is not the rule of law,” he said, adding that under Greek law a defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty when appealing misdemeanor charges, and that the Justice Minister “should know this.”
Dilian also cited testimony given in closed session before parliament by the head of the National Intelligence Service (EYP), which he said confirmed that “there was never a joint operational center between the four private individuals and the intelligence service.” He expressed regret that this testimony “was not duly examined by the Zisis committee, nor presented to the court before contrary claims were made.” He also said he was surprised that the former National Intelligence director had not been called to testify in last week’s parliamentary discussions, arguing that such testimony would have clarified that companies operating in this sector “sell the technology and never operate it.”
A call for parliamentary inquiry
Dilian said Intellexa intends to call “all relevant witnesses” during appeal proceedings in pursuit of full acquittal. He expressed regret that no parliamentary inquiry committee had been established, and aligned himself with the call by former Prime Minister Antonis Samaras for one to be formed. “The evidence will show that we did nothing wrong,” he said.
He also invoked statements by former Prime Ministers Kostas Karamanlis and Alexis Tsipras — citing Karamanlis on institutional transparency and political accountability, and Tsipras on restoring public trust and the rule of law — arguing that these voices “reinforce the urgent need for a credible process that can reveal the whole truth.”
Dilian said Intellexa would pursue “every appropriate legal remedy, both at the national and international level,” and closed by insisting the case must be judged “on the basis of evidence, not political narratives.”
Opposition demands action
Party spokesman Kostas Tsoukalas said Dilian’s new remarks renewed questions about the role of Maximos Mansion, the Prime Minister’s office, and the intelligence service in the illegal wiretapping case.
PASOK called on the Supreme Court prosecutor’s office to summon Dilian to testify without delay, arguing that if he is publicly claiming to hold information about individuals and events connected to the case, prosecutors are obliged to hear it. “Justice has a duty to investigate every allegation and every new piece of information concerning a case of major institutional significance for the country,” the party said.
The opposition renewed its accusations that the government has sought to contain rather than fully investigate the scandal, arguing that the incomplete scrutiny of the allegations continues to cast a shadow over Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and the functioning of democratic institutions.
