Syrian Embassy 'Spy' To Stand Trial in Germany

A man employed at Syria's embassy in Berlin will be tried for allegedly passing on information relating to opponents of Bashar Assad's regime, Germany's federal court told the DPA news agency Sunday.

Confirming previous reports in the weekly news magazine Der Spiegel, the court said the Syrian man -- who has not been named -- was arrested in February and will be tried on 35 counts of espionage.

He had worked for the embassy since 2008 and, according to investigators, regularly provided information to his superiors about opponents and opposition groups based in Germany.

The information led to the arrest of a number of people in Syria linked to the opponents.

A second man working for the embassy, of dual German and Lebanese nationality, was also arrested in February.

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle subsequently announced that four embassy employees had been expelled from Germany.