Germany bans group accused of Iran links and Hezbollah support, raids properties

Germany on Wednesday banned the Hamburg Islamic Centre, known as IZH, a Muslim religious association that has been under investigation for several months over its alleged support for the Iranian-backed Hezbollah terror group in Lebanon.

The IZH “promotes an Islamist-extremist, totalitarian ideology in Germany,” while it and its sub-organizations “also support the terrorists of Hezbollah and spread aggressive antisemitism,” said German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser in a statement.

The interior ministry said that 53 of the organization’s premises had been searched by authorities in eight German states early on Wednesday, acting on a court order.

Evidence from an earlier search of 55 properties conducted in November provided the basis for Wednesday’s ban of the IZH, said the ministry.

In addition to the Hamburg-based IZH — which includes one of the oldest mosques in Germany, known for its turquoise exterior — its subgroups in Frankfurt, Munich and Berlin were also banned.

The ministry said that because of the ban, four Shiite mosques in Germany will be closed. The IZH’s assets are also being confiscated.

Germany considers Hezbollah a terrorist organization and in 2020 banned the group from carrying out activities on its soil.

Faeser alleged that “as the direct representative of Iran’s ‘Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution,'” the IZH disseminates “the ideology of the Islamic Revolution in an aggressive and militant way and seeks to bring about such a revolution in the Federal Republic of Germany.”

“This Islamist ideology is opposed to human dignity, women’s rights, an independent judiciary and our democratic government,” Faeser said. She added that she wanted to make it clear that “this ban absolutely does not apply to the peaceful practice of the Shiite religion.”

Founded by Iranian immigrants in 1953, the Hamburg Islamic Centre had already been under surveillance by domestic intelligence for some time. Calls have been growing in recent years for authorities to close down its Imam Ali Mosque, also known as the Blue Mosque, because of its alleged links to Iran.

The IZH said last fall that it “condemns every form of violence and extremism and has always advocated peace, tolerance and interreligious dialogue.” It was not available for comment by phone on Wednesday morning, and its website was not accessible to the public.

The ban on IZH comes as Hezbollah-led forces continue to attack Israeli communities and military posts along the Israel-Lebanon border on a near-daily basis, as they have since October 8, saying they are doing so to support Gaza amid the war there.

It also comes amid a surge of antisemitism in Germany and around the world since the Hamas terror group’s October 7 attack on Israel, when thousands of terrorists killed some 1,200 people and took 251 hostages, starting the ongoing war.