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Germany will appoint Sinan Selen, a Turkish-born lawyer who immigrated as a child, to lead the country's domestic intelligence agency BfV, marking the first time someone of immigrant background will head a German security institution.
Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt is expected to announce the appointment on Monday, according to German media reports citing sources from the ruling Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union (CDU/CSU) and Social Democratic Party (SPD) coalition.
Selen, 53, currently serving as deputy president of the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) since January 2019, will take charge of the 4,200-employee agency after serving in an acting capacity for 10 months.
The appointment makes Selen the first non-native-born German to lead the 75-year-old counterintelligence agency, representing a significant milestone for immigrant integration in Germany's security apparatus.
"The best professional in German security agencies," one insider told German media outlet Bild, expressing satisfaction with Dobrindt's choice.
Born in Istanbul in 1972, Selen moved to Germany at age 4 when his parents, both journalists with Deutsche Welle (DW), immigrated to the country. He grew up in Cologne and studied law at the University of Cologne, specializing in domestic and justice policy.
Selen worked as an administrative lawyer at the Federal Ministry of the Interior and the Federal Criminal Police Office before joining the security sector. He also served in security roles at TUI Group and worked on public safety matters at the Interior Ministry and Federal Police headquarters.
The incoming BfV chief successfully applied to renounce his Turkish citizenship several years ago, according to German media reports. Selen replaces Thomas Haldenwang, 65, who resigned in late 2024 to run unsuccessfully for parliament. Since then, Selen and fellow deputy president Silke Willems, 55, have been leading the agency in an acting capacity.
The appointment comes at a crucial time for German intelligence, with the agency marking its 75th anniversary on Oct. 27.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz recently called for "a foreign and security policy paradigm shift" during the introduction of the new federal intelligence service BND head Martin Jager last week.
"Rarely in the history of the Federal Republic has the security situation been so serious. We have system rivals and adversaries again—and they are becoming increasingly aggressive," Merz stated, remarks that carry significance for domestic intelligence operations as well.
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