The Bundeswehr has found itself in the center of a spy scandal after the respected German weekly Der Spiegel reported that the intelligence service of the Islamic Republic of Iran recruited a German trooper years ago.

Axar.az reports Germany media.

The man with Afghan roots worked as a translator and had access to sensitive information.

A 50-year-old Bundeswehr trooper, who allegedly colluded with the Iranian intelligence service for several years, has been arrested in Germany.

“Abdul Hamid S. is strongly suspected of having worked for a foreign intelligence agency. The suspect was a language expert and cultural adviser for the Bundeswehr. In this capacity, he is believed to have passed insights to an Iranian intelligence agency", the statement by the federal prosecutor’s office reads.

Der Spiegel reported earlier today that he had access to highly sensitive information, such as the deployment of troops in Afghanistan, but possibly also other areas of interest and passed it to the Iranian secret services.

According to Der Spiegel's information, the activities of Iranian intelligence services in Europe have been a matter of increasing concern for local authorities. Last year, an Iranian diplomat, who received accreditation in Austria, was arrested in Germany. For years, he had reportedly had informants in Belgium, and allegedly commissioned two of them to attack a meeting of an Iranian opposition group in Paris.