Hamburg: The German Ministry of the Interior has imposed a ban on the Islamic Center Hamburg and its affiliated organizations, accusing them of having links with Iran and working to implement Islamic laws.
According to a Reuters report, the German Ministry of the Interior stated that the Islamic Center Hamburg had acted as a direct representative of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei and had worked to establish an ideological government by instigating an Islamic revolution in Germany.
The Islamic Center Hamburg has not issued any statement on this matter, and its website is not accessible to the public.
The Ministry of the Interior said that investigators, under court orders, had conducted searches at 53 locations of the Islamic Center across eight German states.
The statement added that the ban also extends to the Islamic Center Hamburg’s branches in Frankfurt, Munich, and Berlin, and four mosques have been closed as well.
The Islamic Center Hamburg is known for its distinctive architecture and is one of the older mosques established in Germany.
The Ministry of the Interior clarified that the ban imposed on Wednesday was based on evidence obtained during the search of 55 properties associated with the Islamic Center in November.
The statement further mentioned that the Islamic Center Hamburg had supported Hezbollah, a Lebanese organization backed by Iran, which is banned in Germany and designated as a terrorist organization by the European Union.
Interior Minister Nancy Faeser stated that the ban was imposed because the Islamic Center Hamburg promoted Islamic extremism and authoritarian ideologies that are contrary to human dignity, women’s rights, an independent judiciary, and democratic governance.
She emphasized that this ban does not apply to peaceful religious practices of the Shia faith.
In response, Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it had summoned the German ambassador in Tehran to protest the ban on the Islamic Center.
In a statement on social media, the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs described the action as Islamophobic and contrary to the teachings of Abrahamic religions.
The Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs also claimed that the ban infringes on freedom of expression and would promote tension and extremism.
On the other hand, sources from the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs indicated that it is Iran’s responsibility to take fundamental steps to improve relations between the two countries, as relations have deteriorated in recent years.
It is noteworthy that a 2020 report on Islam in Germany stated that 5.5% of Germany’s population of 83 million is Muslim.