Concerns about potential retaliation have escalated in Germany following the US and Israeli bombing campaigns against Iran. Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt described the threat as "abstract" but emphasized that security authorities are closely monitoring the situation, highlighting the heightened state of alert.

Germany's domestic intelligence agency, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV), has warned of possible retaliatory attacks by Iranian intelligence services. The agency stated that Jewish institutions, diplomatic representatives, and military sites could be targeted, with members of the Iranian opposition in Germany also at risk, having faced surveillance and threats for decades.

Felix Klein, the government's antisemitism commissioner, and Marc Henrichmann, chairman of the Parliamentary Oversight Committee for the Secret Services, expressed fears that Iran might use its networks in Germany to carry out terrorist attacks against Jewish and Israeli targets. Omid Nouripour, a German-Iranian lawmaker, added that Iranian intelligence services have the capability to conduct attacks in Europe, including Germany, citing past open threats.

Earlier this year, German security agencies were already tracking Iranian intelligence activities in response to protests in Iran, noting transnational repression tactics such as espionage, intimidation, and violence against dissidents. Cyberattacks have become increasingly significant, with reports of Iranian groups compromising the communication systems of Iranian exiles, including activists and journalists.

The case of German-Iranian Jamshid Sharmahd, who was abducted in 2020 and reportedly executed, sparked widespread outrage. The BfV outlined scenarios where Iranian intelligence services hack into private accounts of diaspora members to gather personal data. Currently, the risk of being targeted by Iranian intelligence in Germany is more likely to increase than decrease, amid the escalating conflict.

Source: www.dw.com