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French government Spokesman Gabriel Attal announced that President Emmanuel Macron has summoned the defense council for an "exceptional" meeting to be held, today, Thursday, on the issue of the possible targeting of his phone by the Israeli spyware Pegasus.

French and foreign media reports had stated that President Macron was one of a number of world leaders believed to have been targeted by hacking their phones using the Israeli spyware Pegasus, according to the French newspaper, Le Parisien.

On his part, yesterday, a senior NSO official denied targeting the French President Emmanuel Macron by the controversial Pegasus program, adding: "I can assure you with certainty that President Macron was not a target."

On Wednesday, Macron ordered a series of investigations, stressing at the same time that it would be "irresponsible" to talk about any reaction from Paris just yet, until the situation and facts are set straight.

The Pegasus program, designed by an Israeli private firm NSO, in direct coordination with the Israeli government, aids in the surveillance of smartphones by infecting them with a virus that enables the seizure of the user's pictures, chats, and documents.

According to a New York Times investigation, "Israel" has discreetly allowed a group of electronic surveillance corporations to work for the Saudi government.

It's worth noting that the  Israeli NSO Group was founded by former Unit 8200 workers, one of "Israel's" most powerful intelligence agencies tasked with spying on institutions and individuals all over the world.