LEAD: Germany expels four Syrian diplomats

Feb 9, 2012, 11:38 GMT

Berlin - Germany expelled four Syrian diplomats on Thursday, two days after the arrest of two men on suspicion of spying on exiled Syrian dissidents in Germany.

'After the arrest of two persons suspected of espionage on behalf of Syria, I have instructed that four staff of the Syrian embassy in Berlin be expelled,' Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said.

'The Syrian ambassador has been informed of this decision.'

The four - three men and a woman - have been given three days to leave the country, he added.

Their expulsion follows the arrest on Tuesday of two men - a Syrian and a Lebanese-German - on charges of spying on Syrian dissidents living in Germany.

Prosecutors said the two are suspected of having been part of a spy ring working for Syrian intelligence.

They are alleged to have infiltrated exiled opposition groups and reported back to their handlers at the Syrian embassy over a period of years.

The men had been under surveillance by German intelligence prior to their arrests.

Earlier this week, Syria's ambassador was summoned to the Foreign Ministry in Berlin and handed a protest over the alleged surveillance of Syrian dissidents on German soil.

More sanctions against Syria are possible if Germany discovered further evidence of intimidation of Syrian opposition activists on German soil, sources at the ministry told dpa.

Germany is home to more than 32,000 Syrian nationals.

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