The man who came to epitomise the ruthless world of the East German spy machine during the Cold War, Markus Wolf, has died at his home in Berlin. Wolf was feared and admired by Western intelligence officials and ran a network of 4,000 spies - many of them working deep inside the West German establishment.
The unmasking of one of his moles, Gunter Guillaume, caused the downfall of Chancellor Willy Brandt.
Tall and described as strikingly handsome, Wolf was known as "the man with no face" because for many years there were no photographs of him.
And he is believed to have been the inspiration for John Le Carre's Soviet spymaster "Karla" in the thriller Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.
From the BBC site, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6132684.stm
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