Germany summons Iranian ambassador after court convicts spies planning attacks on Jewish leaders

A Hamburg higher regional court sentenced a 54-year-old man to eight and a half years in prison and a 43-year-old man to four and a half years for espionage and attempted terrorist activities ordered by Iran. The defendants, living in Denmark, were convicted of gathering intelligence on Josef Schuster, president of the Central Council of Jews, and Volker Beck, head of the German-Israeli Society, on directives from officers of the Quds Brigade, the foreign arm of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard.

They also prepared a fire-bomb attack on a kosher food store in Berlin. In response, Germany’s Auswärtiges Amt summoned the Iranian ambassador, stating that Iran’s actions are “most strongly condemned” and that attacks on Jewish life will not be tolerated. The ministry highlighted its ongoing push to have the Revolutionary Guard officially designated as a terrorist organization within the EU.