Germany ends probe of alleged U.S. phone monitoring

BERLIN, June 12 (UPI) -- A year-long investigation into alleged wiretapping by the U.S. National Security Agency of German Chancellor Angela Merkel's cellphone has ended, German prosecutors said Friday.

"The allegation cannot be proven by means of criminal trial law," the office of federal prosecutor Harald Range said in a statement, adding that despite the lack of evidence useable in court, alleged mass surveillance by U.S. and United Kingdom intelligence agencies is still under investigation.

Claims that the NSA spied on Germany arose in documents leaked in 2013 by former NSA employee Edward Snowden, and caused what Berlin called a "grave breach of trust" between Germany and the United States. An internal review by U.S. officials yielded information that over 30 world leaders had been monitored by the NSA, including Merkel and her cellphone. The White House ended some of the tracking efforts, including those involving Merkel, but the United States thus far has not revealed the extent of surveillance in the past.

"The possible mass collection of telecommunications data of the population of Germany by British and U.S. intelligence agencies continues to be under observation. The examination of whether or not the results of the past and still-ongoing investigation lead to evidence of a concrete, actionable crime has not been concluded, Range's office said.