The Qatari government organized a large -scale and long spy campaign against the officials of the FIFA with the help of former CIA agents.
Investigation, conducted by the Investigative Group of the Swiss Media ” SRF Investigativ “shows that intelligence agents tried to influence world events during the secret operation. In addition, the spy campaign was funded by Qatar with hundreds of millions of dollars.
The ultimate goal of the operation called “Project Merciless” (merciless project) is to protect the country’s reputation and maintain the opportunity to hold the World Cup after mass criticism of Qatar due to provocative statements of the government and disagreements with some European countries.
Spy activity began in 2012, 2 years after the Qatar was allowed to hold the World Cup in 2010. The highest echelons of the Qatari government were involved in intelligence, including the current head of state, Emir Katar.
The scale of spy activity is impressive. One of the operations lasted 9 years and covered 5 continents. At least 66 operatives participated in it. The budget amounted to $ 387 million
According to investigation , Qatar wanted to get “absolute control over the whole world.” To survive, Qatar hired the American private company Global Risk Advisors (GRA). Switzerland was a key venue for the operation.
The main spy and its Qatari clients met in Zurich. And in Switzerland they spied on various high -ranking people associated with the organization of FIFA. Thus, presumably, the crimes were committed by Qatar. For officials, total surveillance was carried out – their email accounts, computers, phones, friends and even family members became the target of Qatar agents.
The operation was aimed not only at the receipt of intelligence. For 10 years, Qatar tried to influence the political decisions of FIFA. The surveillance was affected by the Supreme Council of FIFA and the FIFA Executive Committee.
However, no actions regarding the investigations of the prosecutor’s office occurred. The prosecutors omitted obvious investigative actions. In the end, 8 years later, from the moment of spying, the prosecutor’s office closed the case due to the “lack of suitable investigation routes.” According to investigators, “comprehensive efforts were made to investigate the materials that were carried out within the framework of legal norms.”