Spread of Islamism and Antisemitism: Islamic Center Hamburg banned
According to the Ministry, starting early in the morning, 53 objects were searched in Hamburg and seven other federal states: in Bremen, Berlin, Lower Saxony, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Hesse, North Rhine-Westphalia, and Bavaria. The IZH-operated Blue Mosque on the Hamburg Outer Alster and three other mosques in other federal states were seized, as well as the rest of the association's assets.
By the afternoon, according to the Federal Interior Ministry, "a large number of IT devices, two vehicles, cash amounting to at least 100,000 Euro," a large number of documents and printed matter, books, and records related to the proscribed terror organizations Hezbollah and Hamas were secured. Approximately 670 law enforcement officers from the state and federal police were involved.
Demands for a ban on the IZH had been ongoing, and the organization is monitored by the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution. The center was described as "a direct representation" of the Iranian revolutionary leader, spreading the ideology of the "Islamic Revolution" in a conspiratorial manner by the Interior Ministry and Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD).
In preparation for the ban, the authorities had searched the IZH in November for evidence. The "extensively conducted investigations" against the center had heard "serious suspicions" and led to the ban, Faeser explained. Its ideology targeted "human dignity, women's rights, an independent judiciary, and our democratic state."
The ban was widely welcomed. Hamburg's First Mayor Peter Tschentscher (SPD) declared that the IZH was "part of a large Islamic network." Hamburg's Senator for the Interior Andy Grote (SPD) called the IZH an "outpost of the misogynistic Iranian regime." The ban was a "real hit" against extremists.
The President of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, Josef Schuster, called the ban "consistent." Anti-Semitism, one of the core elements of an ideology spread by Iran and its representatives, was denounced in Berlin. The Antisemitism Commissioner of the Federal Government, Felix Klein, told the Funke Media Group that the association pursued constitutionally subversive goals and was "significantly influenced by Iran."
The Iranian reaction was indignant. The Iranian government summoned the German ambassador in response to the ban and the center's closure, as reported by the Iranian Foreign Ministry. It accused the German authorities of a "hostile act" and "Islamophobia."
Faeser emphasized that the ban targeted Islamists and not Islam itself. "We are not acting against a religion."
According to sources at the Foreign Office in Berlin, a conversation with the Iranian ambassador took place on Wednesday. However, it was not an "official summoning."
"Our relations have been severely damaged in recent years in an unprecedented way," a Foreign Office source added. "There are a number of issues that burden our relations with Iran."
Regarding "the human rights situation in the country, Iran's direct attacks on Israel, and its destabilizing regional politics, its Nuclear program, and its support for Russia's war against Ukraine, as well as bilateral matters such as for example detainees," it was further stated. It lies "on the Iranian side, through concrete steps to show that a change in relations with Germany and Europe is desired."
According to the authorities, organizations controlled by the IZH were also banned. This included the Islamic Cultural Center in Frankfurt am Main, the Islamic Center Berlin, and the Islamic Association Bavaria.
- The searches in Hamburg were part of a larger operation that also involved Bremen, Berlin, Lower Saxony, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Hesse, North Rhine-Westphalia, and Bavaria.
- The Interior Ministry in North Rhine-Westphalia was also involved in the seizure of assets related to the IZH and its affiliates.
- The Islamic Centre Hamburg, an operating division of the IZH, was one of the mosques seized during the operations.
- In Hesse, several vehicles and large sums of money were confiscated as part of the investigations against the IZH.
- The ban on the IZH and its affiliated organizations was supported by the Jewish community in Germany, citing Jew-hatred as one of the core elements of their ideology.
- The PDP, a political party in Bremen, praised the ban and called for further actions against Islamist extremism.
- The closure of the IZH and its affiliates in Germany was met with criticism from Iran, which accused the German authorities of Islamophobia and a hostile act.
- The Federal Police in Bavaria was instrumental in the investigation and subsequent ban of the Islamic Association Bavaria, an organization linked to the IZH.
- The IZH's ban and the closure of its affiliates in Germany have sparked debates in Berlin about the balance between freedom of religion and the fight against Islamist extremism.
- In response to the ban, Hezbollah and Hamas issued statements condemning Germany's actions and called for support from their followers.
- The Islamic Centre Frankfurt am Main, another affiliate of the IZH, was also banned by the authorities, citing its links to radical Islamist groups as the reason for the ban.
