Germany's BfV domestic intelligence agency failed to act on two reports warning of security threats posed by the country's far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, it emerged on Sunday.
The report could strengthen calls for the ouster of BfV president Hans-Georg Maassen, whose critics say he has downplayed anti-migrant violence in the eastern city of Chemnitz and have questioned his relationship with far-right politicians.
The scandal brews as Mr Maassen was reported by Der Spiegel to be pushing to double the size of the agency by 2021, to meet the challenges posed by security threats.
Conservative Chancellor Angela Merkel and Interior Minister Horst Seehofer, who heads the Bavarian conservatives, will meet on Tuesday to discuss Maassen's fate with Andrea Nahles, the head of the Social Democratic coalition partner, who has called for the spymaster to be fired.
"Mr. Maassen needs to go, and I tell you, he will go," Mrs Nahles told reporters on Saturday.
Mr Maassen courted controversy earlier this month when he questioned the authenticity of a video appearing to show far-right extremists attacking migrants in the city of Chemnitz, though he later claimed the comments were misunderstood.
Police are investigating charges of anti-migrant violence and numerous cases of people showing the Hitler salute during protests that erupted in Chemnitz after an Iraqi man and a Syrian were arrested in the fatal stabbing of a German man.
Mr Maassen's ties to the far-right have been questioned in the past. This year, a former leader of the AfD's youth wing, Franziska Schreiber, said Mr Maassen had advised ex-AfD leader Frauke Petry on how the party could avoid being put under surveillance by his agency. He has denied giving such counsel.
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Read more:
Merkel 'outraged' by Nazi chants in far-right rally
Fears of ‘second Chemnitz’ as Afghans held over German man’s death
Migrant beaten in racist attack in north German city
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Then last week, the BfV was forced to deny a report by public broadcaster ARD that Mr Maassen had told an AfD lawmaker about parts of a report from his agency before it was published.
The latest allegations centre on reports sent by security officials in two German states – Bremen and Lower Saxony – to Mr Maassen’s agency expressing concern about AfD youth chapters and their suspected ties to extremists that it allegedly ignored.
Both states have put the AfD groups under surveillance, but their reports "were left untouched at the BfV headquarters for six months", according to a senior intelligence source. It said the BfV did not respond to the queiries.
The far-right AfD became the second largest party in Germany’s Budnestag in last year’s elections, serving as the German iteration of a populist electoral wave sweeping Europe.
It was not immediately clear if or when those reports were brought to the attention of Mr Maassen himself.
A spokesman for the interior ministry, which oversees the BfV agency, declined to comment on the Spiegel report, citing restrictions on public information about the agency.
Mr Maassen’s career has been one defined by controversy, in 2002, whilst an employee of the Interior ministry, he tried to prevent a German resident at Guantanamo Bay prison form returning him on the grounds that his citizenship had lapsed.
In 2017, following the Berlin Christmas market terror attack, he said reports that the BfV had undercover agents within organisations linked to the plot, were false. However, documents proving this was the case surfaced earlier this year.
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
CHATGPT%20ENTERPRISE%20FEATURES
%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Enterprise-grade%20security%20and%20privacy%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Unlimited%20higher-speed%20GPT-4%20access%20with%20no%20caps%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Longer%20context%20windows%20for%20processing%20longer%20inputs%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Advanced%20data%20analysis%20capabilities%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Customisation%20options%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Shareable%20chat%20templates%20that%20companies%20can%20use%20to%20collaborate%20and%20build%20common%20workflows%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Analytics%20dashboard%20for%20usage%20insights%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Free%20credits%20to%20use%20OpenAI%20APIs%20to%20extend%20OpenAI%20into%20a%20fully-custom%20solution%20for%20enterprises%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Sri Lanka squad for tri-nation series
Angelo Mathews (c), Upul Tharanga, Danushka Gunathilaka, Kusal Mendis, Dinesh Chandimal, Kusal Janith Perera, Thisara Perera, Asela Gunaratne, Niroshan Dickwella, Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Pradeep, Dushmantha Chameera, Shehan Madushanka, Akila Dananjaya, Lakshan Sandakan and Wanidu Hasaranga
The biog
Name: Salem Alkarbi
Age: 32
Favourite Al Wasl player: Alexandre Oliveira
First started supporting Al Wasl: 7
Biggest rival: Al Nasr
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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%3Cp%3E%0D%3Cstrong%3ELittle%20notes%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMy%20girls%20often%20find%20a%20letter%20from%20me%2C%20with%20a%20joke%2C%20task%20or%20some%20instructions%20for%20the%20afternoon%2C%20and%20saying%20what%20I%E2%80%99m%20excited%20for%20when%20I%20get%20home.%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPhone%20call%20check-in%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMy%20kids%20know%20that%20at%203.30pm%20I%E2%80%99ll%20be%20free%20for%20a%20quick%20chat.%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EHighs%20and%20lows%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EInstead%20of%20a%20%E2%80%9Chow%20was%20your%20day%3F%E2%80%9D%2C%20at%20dinner%20or%20at%20bathtime%20we%20share%20three%20highlights%3B%20one%20thing%20that%20didn%E2%80%99t%20go%20so%20well%3B%20and%20something%20we%E2%80%99re%20looking%20forward%20to.%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EI%20start%2C%20you%20next%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EIn%20the%20morning%2C%20I%20often%20start%20a%20little%20Lego%20project%20or%20drawing%2C%20and%20ask%20them%20to%20work%20on%20it%20while%20I%E2%80%99m%20gone%2C%20then%20we%E2%80%99ll%20finish%20it%20together.%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBedtime%20connection%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EWake%20up%20and%20sleep%20time%20are%20important%20moments.%20A%20snuggle%2C%20some%20proud%20words%2C%20listening%2C%20a%20story.%20I%20can%E2%80%99t%20be%20there%20every%20night%2C%20but%20I%20can%20start%20the%20day%20with%20them.%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EUndivided%20attention%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPutting%20the%20phone%20away%20when%20I%20get%20home%20often%20means%20sitting%20in%20the%20car%20to%20send%20a%20last%20email%2C%20but%20leaving%20it%20out%20of%20sight%20between%20home%20time%20and%20bedtime%20means%20you%20can%20connect%20properly.%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EDemystify%2C%20don%E2%80%99t%20demonise%20your%20job%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EHelp%20them%20understand%20what%20you%20do%2C%20where%20and%20why.%20Show%20them%20your%20workplace%20if%20you%20can%2C%20then%20it%E2%80%99s%20not%20so%20abstract%20when%20you%E2%80%99re%20away%20-%20they%E2%80%99ll%20picture%20you%20there.%20Invite%20them%20into%20your%20%E2%80%9Cother%E2%80%9D%20world%20so%20they%20know%20more%20about%20the%20different%20roles%20you%20have.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Cinco in numbers
Dh3.7 million
The estimated cost of Victoria Swarovski’s gem-encrusted Michael Cinco wedding gown
46
The number, in kilograms, that Swarovski’s wedding gown weighed.
1,000
The hours it took to create Cinco’s vermillion petal gown, as seen in his atelier [note, is the one he’s playing with in the corner of a room]
50
How many looks Cinco has created in a new collection to celebrate Ballet Philippines’ 50th birthday
3,000
The hours needed to create the butterfly gown worn by Aishwarya Rai to the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.
1.1 million
The number of followers that Michael Cinco’s Instagram account has garnered.
