Journalists' union, guild file complaint over Paragon case

(ANSA) - ROME, FEB 19 - Italian journalists union Fnsi and guild OdG have filed a criminal complaint against unknown persons to the State Attorney's Office in Rome demanding an investigation into the case of the journalists who were allegedly spied on through Paragon Solutions' military-grade Graphite hacking software, the two organizations said on Wednesday.
    "We are dealing with facts that are not only violating the criminal code but the Constitution itself: the press is free", Fnsi secretary general Alessandra Costante said.
    Meanwhile Odg president, Carlo Bartoli, said the complaint was "an extraordinary act of which we perceive the gravity, but it wasn't possible to wait longer: if the government does not clarify this point, we can only appeal to the judiciary". On Tuesday, Cabinet Undersecretary Alfredo Mantovano told Lower House Speaker Lorenzo Fontana in a letter that the government has already made public all declassified information over the 'Graphite' military-grade hacking software of Israeli company Paragon Solutions.
    The letter said the Paragon case was discussed by Parliament's COPASIR security committee, which oversees Italy's intelligence agencies, and the Minister for Relations with Parliament Luca Ciriani had provided to lawmakers "the only information that could be divulged to the public" during a question time session at the Lower House on February 12.
    Every other aspect of the case is classified and can only be discussed by the government within COPASIR and not reported directly to parliament, the letter said.
    Last week, Ciriani denied reports that Paragon Solutions, which is reported to only work with state entities, had terminated its client relationship with Italy amid a furore over the alleged illegal use of its hacking software to spy on journalists and activists. Migrant-rescue NGO Mediterranea Saving Humans founder and operations chief Luca Casarini and the editor-in-chief of online investigative news outlet Fanpage, Francesco Cancellato, were reported to be among the victims in Italy. (ANSA).