• Military
• WMD
• Intelligence

• Security Menu                     

• Systems
• Industry
• Operations
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• Space

German interior minister sacks homeland security chief

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Berlin, Feb 5, IRNA -- Germany`s Federal Crime Office Chief (FCO), 
Ulrich Kersten, charged with homeland anti-terror security, was fired 
Thursday following weeks of heated debates over a relocation of the 
FCO. 
"I would like to stress that it was a difficult decision to make 
for me," Interior Minister Otto Schily said during the announcement 
cited by Spiegel Online. 
According to Spiegel, the FCO chief `is being relieved (of his 
duties) as a consequence of weeks of disputes over the planned 
relocation of major parts of the FCO (from Wiesbaden) to Berlin`. 
Kersten was replaced by the head of the police department of the 
interior ministry of the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, 
Joerg Ziercke. 
Together with Schily, Kersten was accused of planning the FCO`s 
relocation despite vehement opposition by the agency`s employees. 
Schily has promised to study the relocation plans anew following 
massive protests and demonstrations. 
2052/BH/210 
End