Iran takes German citizens hostage – Foreign Office warns

The federal government is calling on Germans in Iran to leave the country and is generally warning against entering the country. “We have seen in the Jamshid Sharmahd case that Iran is taking German citizens hostage,” said Foreign Office spokesman Sebastian Fischer on Friday in Berlin. They want to spare other German citizens this fate. So repeat that. There are also a small number of Germans in Iranian custody who are being looked after and for whose release we are constantly trying.

There is a “real risk” for German citizens of being arbitrarily arrested and sentenced to long prison sentences. People with dual citizenship are particularly at risk, according to the Foreign Office website.

Before leaving the country, travelers should check with their airlines to see whether the flights are actually taking place. “Longer closures of Iranian airspace, airports and land borders as well as further cancellations of flight connections cannot be ruled out,” the Foreign Office warns. It is also possible to leave the country by land, but the same applies here: not every border crossing is open.

After the execution of the German-Iranian Sharmahd on Monday, the Foreign Office ordered the closure of the three Iranian consulates general in Germany on Thursday. This will take a few weeks to process, the spokesman said. The Iranian embassy remains open so that consular matters are possible through it. He could not say anything about possible Iranian countermeasures.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi as a sanction against Iranians living in Germany. The Iranian opposition in Germany welcomed the closure. The Iranian regime is accused of taking action against Iranian opposition members in European countries and also in Germany.