Germany’s justice minister has called for the removal of the country’s top prosecutor, who recently ordered that two journalists be probed for disclosing government plans to expand its online surveillance program.

Justice Minister Heiko Maas said on Tuesday that he had asked German President Joachim Gauck to send Harald Range, the federal prosecutor, into retirement and that he had sought Chancellor Angela Merkel’s consultation as well, the New York Times reported on Tuesday.

Earlier, Germany’s domestic intelligence agency, known as the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, filed a lawsuit against journalists Markus Beckedahl and Andre Meister, working for the digital rights blog Netzpolitik.org, after the two disclosed a highly confidential legislative committee report on a new unit established to monitor the Internet, particularly social media.

Skepticism from Merkel

On July 31, the German justice minster issued a statement expressing doubt whether “the journalists had the intention to harm Germany or benefit a foreign power through their publication” of the documents.

Christiane Wirtz, a spokeswoman for Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Monday that the comments by Maas had the “full support” of the German chancellor.

Range, the federal prosecutor, publicly criticized the German minister and accused him of an “intolerable intervention against the independence of the judiciary.”

Maas retorted that his “trust in Mr. Range’s ability to carry out his office has been irreparably damaged.”

From people, too

German people also strongly reacted to the decision to file a lawsuit against the two journalists, with over 2,000 protesters taking to the streets on August 1 in Berlin to express support for the duo.

Netzpolitik.org also said the government lawsuit constituted an “attack on freedom of the press.”

In the face of strong public and media reaction to the investigation, Range said on July 31 that he had decided to halt the probe, adding that his office would not launch a criminal prosecution, pending an opinion from an outside expert on whether the journalists’ reports constituted leaking a state secret.