Fri 12 November 2021:
The man due to take over as CEO of Israeli spyware company NSO Group, Isaac Benbenisti, has quit after the business was blacklisted by the US Commerce Department, the company said yesterday.
In a resignation letter, excerpts of which were provided by a spokesperson, Benbenisti said “in light of the special circumstances” that have arisen following the US decision, he “would not be able to assume the position of CEO”.
Last week, the US Commerce Department placed NSO on a blacklist after it determined the Israeli spyware company had acted “contrary to the foreign policy and national security interests of the U.S.”
The designation comes three months after a consortium of journalists working with the French non-profit group Forbidden Stories revealed multiple cases of journalists and activists who had their phones hacked by foreign governments using the company’s signature spyware – Pegasus – including American citizens.
Pegasus is also alleged to have been deployed by foreign governments against dissidents, journalists, diplomats and members of the clergy. Its clients have included Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Hungary and India.
The spyware was used to target the phones of six Palestinian human rights groups that were controversially declared terrorist organisations by Defence Minister Benny Gantz, an investigation by Front Line Defenders (FLD) revealed this week.
The Palestinian government has also revealed that the spyware was found on the mobile phones of foreign ministry employees.
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