Germany banned the Islamic Centre of Hamburg on Wednesday, saying it is an extremist organisation that supports Hezbollah and acts as a front for Iran’s supreme leader.
The Federal Ministry of the Interior and Community Affairs has announced the banning of the Islamic Centre Hamburg (IZH) and its national branches, calling its mission “unconstitutional.” Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said in a statement:
Today, we banned [IZH], which promotes an Islamist-extremist, totalitarian ideology in Germany. This Islamist ideology is opposed to human dignity, women’s rights, an independent judiciary and our democratic government.
It said the group and its “sub-organisations” support Hezbollah and “spread aggressive anti-Semitism.” Germany outlawed the armed Lebanese group in 2020, classifying it as a “terrorist” organisation.
Its ministry also claims the group acts “as a direct representative of the “supreme leader” of Iran” and works to create an Islamic revolution in Germany “outside a free and democratic constitutional system.”
The ban was imposed after German authorities raided 55 sites linked to the group last November, during which police seized material that “undoubtedly” showed the group was operating in a “highly conspiratorial manner” and trying to conceal its political aims.
However, the ministry did not describe the evidence collected.
The ban will see four Shiite Muslim mosques in Germany closed and IZH assets confiscated.
Feser emphasised that the group was not selected for religious reasons and that Shia Muslims are free to practice their faith. She also said:
We are drawing a clear distinction between the Islamist extremists that we are cracking down on and the many Muslims who belong to our country and live according to their faith. This ban absolutely does not apply to the peaceful practice of the Shiite [Shia] religion.
The IZH, which runs a mosque in Hamburg, has long been under surveillance by Germany’s domestic intelligence agency.
Before last year’s raids, the group said it “condemns any form of violence and extremism and has always advocated peace, tolerance and interreligious dialogue.”
