Former German spy chief detained over suspected treasonous espionage

Former German spy chief August Hanning was detained on Tuesday on suspicion of attempted treason in a case that ranks among Germany's biggest intelligence scandals since the Cold War. Prosecutors accused him of paying for secret documents and using them in an analysis for a foreign spy service. They did not identify the intelligence service and it was not immediately clear whether the analysis reached its intended recipient. The arrest of a former head of Germany's foreign intelligence is unprecedented and could damage the country's intelligence relationships with allied nations, according to a senior security lawmaker. "Hanning is strongly suspected of treasonous espionage, obtaining state secrets, attempted treason and espionage," the prosecutor's office said in a statement. The Spiegel news magazine reported late on Tuesday that investigators were pursuing a possible connection to Azerbaijan. It reported Hanning had been in contact with an agent from the country. To display this content from YouTube, you must enable advertisement tracking and audience measurement. One of your browser extensions seems to be blocking the video player from loading. To watch this content, you may ne...