By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
TEHRAN/BERLIN (Worthy News) – Tehran has condemned a decision by the German government to ban an Iran-linked Islamic group over “extremism” and to close one of Germany’s oldest mosques.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry summoned the German ambassador over the ban, Worthy News learned from several sources on Thursday.
On the social media platform X, formerly Twitter, the ministry called the ban “an example of Islamophobia” and a violation of freedom of expression.
Asked about the summoning of the ambassador, a German Foreign Ministry official said it was up to Iran to move toward improving ties.
The Islamic Center Hamburg (IZH) had been under investigation for several months over its alleged support for Lebanon’s Hezbollah group, which Iran backs.
Hezbollah has been classified as a “terrorist” group by Germany and several of the country’s allies, including Israel and the United States.
German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said that IZH was banned for propagating extremism and that its famous “Blue Mosque” was being searched by police.
‘NOT ANTI-RELIGION’
“It is very important to me to make a clear distinction here: we are not acting against a religion,” Faeser stressed, adding it was aimed at a group accused of undermining the German state as well as women’s rights.
German sources said the Imam Ali Mosque, known locally as the Blue Mosque, is one of Germany’s oldest mosques and is operated by the IZH.
It comes amid broader concerns about Islamic extremism and related antisemitism in Germany, which has seen an influx of migrants from mainly Islamic countries.
IZH is considered an extension of Iran’s Islamic leadership and is thought to have a “significant influence” over certain mosques and associations, said Germany’s domestic intelligence services.
The IZH is being probed for “spreading aggressive antisemitism,” Faeser explained, adding that raids against the group in November established proof of connections to Hezbollah and led to this week’s ban.
In a statement, the Interior Ministry said that it “banned the Hamburg Islamic Centre and its affiliated organizations throughout Germany to date, as it is an Islamist extremist organization pursuing anti-constitutional objectives.”
The ministry accused the IZH of spreading Iranian revolutionary ideas and spreading those ideas “in an aggressive and militant manner.”
HAMBURG RESIDENTS CONCERNED
There had been calls from concerned Hamburg residents for years to investigate the IZH, Worthy News learned.
Affiliated institutions in the federal states of Bremen, Bavaria, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania Hesse, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, and Berlin were also being investigated.
The ministry said 53 properties were being searched, and four mosques were shut.
Germany’s Interior Ministry last year said the IZH was suspected of “acting against constitutional order” and of “supporting [the] terror organization Hezbollah.”
In 2020, Germany designated Hezbollah as a terrorist organization and banned its activities on German soil.
With further investigations ongoing in Europe’s largest economy, German police vehicles were seen outside the Blue Mosque in Hamburg, and more raids were expected despite Iran’s opposition.
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
Latest News from Worthy News
Senior European intelligence officials see little chance of ending Russia’s war in Ukraine this year, despite President Donald J. Trump’s claim that U.S.-brokered negotiations have brought a peace deal “reasonably close.”
British police raided two properties linked to former Prince Andrew on Thursday and detained the 66-year-old royal on suspicion of misconduct in public office, escalating scrutiny over his past association with the late U.S. financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Christians in Pakistan’s Punjab province were searching Thursday for an abducted minor girl, days after the provincial governor signed legislation raising the legal marriage age to 18 and criminalizing child marriage as a non-bailable offense.
The U.S. trade deficit edged slightly lower in 2025 but remained the third-largest on record, underscoring the scale of America’s global trade imbalance even amid sweeping tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump.
The United Kingdom will not allow the Pentagon to use British-controlled bases to launch potential military strikes against Iran, according to a report by The Times of London.
President Donald Trump on Thursday unveiled what he called a historic new diplomatic framework — the “Board of Peace” — during an inaugural meeting at the U.S. Institute of Peace, announcing billions in pledges for Gaza reconstruction and signaling that a major decision on Iran could come within days.
President Donald Trump is weighing an initial, limited military strike on Iran aimed at forcing Tehran to meet U.S. demands for a comprehensive nuclear agreement, the Wall Street Journal reported.