German parliament approves expansion of intel services’ powers in, outside country

German parliament approves expansion of intel services’ powers in, outside country The reform is criticized by the opposition, who accused the German authorities of seeking to create a "secret police" to control dissentersBERLIN, November 13. /TASS/. The Bundestag, the German parliament, has greenlighted a significant expansion of German intelligence agencies’ responsibilities both domestically and during operations abroad, with 309 lawmakers voting in favor of reforming the legislation governing the activities of these agencies, 190 voting against it, and 71 abstaining. Thus, Germany’s Federal Intelligence service (BND, foreign intelligence) and the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV, counterintelligence) will receive additional tools for monitoring telecommunications and suspects. For example, counterintelligence will be authorized not only to collect information and conduct surveillance, but also to secretly enter apartments and homes under certain conditions. Arrests and official searches remain the responsibility of the police. The BND will be authorized to conduct "offensive" operations abroad, in particular, those aiming to disable servers of hackers who, as it believes, are supported by foreign states. The reform is criticized by the opposition, who accused the German authorities of seeking to create a "secret police" to control dissenters. Ukraine crisisZelensky reports continued Starshield restrictions for UkraineAccording to the head of Kiev regime, the US side offered no explanation for what was happeningRead moreUS refrains from tougher measures against Iran on request from regional countries — TrumpUS President Donald Trump stressed that if not for that request, he could go furtherRead moreRussia withdraws from European Boxing Championship in Croatia citing lack of national flagThe decision was also prompted by problems concerning the issuance of entry visas to members of the Russian delegationRead moreRussian troops liberate two communities in Ukraine operation over past day — top brassUnits of Russia's Battlegroup Center liberated the settlement of Shilovka in the DPR and servicemen of the Battlegroup East liberated the settlement of Voskresenka in the Zaporozhye Region through decisive operationsRead morePress review: EU rejects security reform, stalls Ukraine peace as Armenia loses CSTO voteTop stories from the Russian press on Friday, November 13thRead moreEuropean envoy to Ukraine talks must be acceptable to all parties — top Czech diplomatAccording to Petr Macinka, the person selected must command the respect of the West but also be viewed positively by the EastRead moreRussia does not expect lifting of sanctions against it in medium term — MFAWestern countries have recently begun to employ a sanctions policy with increasing frequency as they are losing their advantages, their "undisputed leadership," Alexander Trofimov saidRead moreBridge damage disrupts transport links across Dnieper in Kiev — lawmakerDamage to the bridges over the Dnieper has repeatedly paralyzed traffic in Kiev since late OctoberRead moreOver 1,000 foreign mercenaries wanted internationally — Russian investigators284 mercenaries had been convictedRead moreRussian forces push Ukrainian troops 30 km from state border in Sumy Region — expertAndrey Marochko specified that the Russian military continues to steadily expand the buffer zone in this areaRead moreFormer Ukrainian prime minister calls Kiev’s demand to maintain 800,000-strong army absurdNikolay Azarov noted that Kiev needed financial guarantees from the EU because it was unable to maintain such large armed forces on its ownRead more