German spies cooperating with Assad

Germany's foreign intelligence service, the BND, has begun cooperating with the Syrian secret police, a German paper has said. The two agencies reportedly share intelligence on extremists, DW reported.

The German Intelligence Service (BND) did not immediately comment on Friday's 'Bild' article, which came as Berlin and other Western governments shun official cooperation with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad over human rights abuses.

"I can't comment on operative details of the BND's work," German government spokeswoman Christiane Wirtz told reporters.

The BND has not commented on the report.

But the mass-circulation daily, citing unnamed "informed sources," said BND intelligence agents had been travelling regularly to Damascus for talks with the infamous Syria's mukhabarat secret police. The paper said the German spy agency also wants to establish a station inside the shuttered German embassy.

The report said the intelligence agents are there to exchange information on extremists.

Sources: MENA