Iran condemns consulate closures in Germany as 'sanction'

The Foreign Ministry has urged German citizens to leave Iran to avoid the risk of being held hostage. The warning comes after the execution of the German-Iranian dissident Jamshid Sharmahd.

Germany's closure of Iran's consulates in the country effectively serves as a "sanction" against Iranians residing in Germany, Tehran said on Friday.

It comes after German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock on Thursday announced that three Iranian consulates would be closed in Germany in response to the execution of German-Iranian dual national Jamshid Sharmahd.

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi criticized the order online.

"The closure of Iran's Consulates in Germany is a sanction against Iranians residing in that country — most of whom possess German citizenship as well," he wrote.

Germans urged to leave Iran

Meanwhile, Germany reiterated its call for citizens in Iran to leave the country and warned others against traveling there.

"We have long had a travel warning for Iran and a request to Germans in Iran to leave the country because we saw from the Jamshid Sharmahd case that Iran is taking German citizens hostage," foreign office spokesperson Sebastian Fischer said on Friday.

"We want to spare other German citizens this fate," he added.

Germany orders all Iranian consulates shut

On Thursday, Germany ordered Iran's consulates in Frankfurt, Hamburg, and Munich to be closed but said the embassy in Berlin would remain open.

"We have repeatedly and unequivocally made it clear to Tehran that the execution of a German citizen will have serious consequences," Foreign Minister Baerbock said when announcing the closures.

On Monday, Iran said it had executed Sharmahd after he was sentenced to death in 2023 on charges of "corruption on Earth" related to a 2008 attack on a mosque and other incidents.

The German government, relatives, and human rights activists strongly rejected the accusations against him and dismissed the trial as unfair.

Baerbock also said Germany would seek EU-wide sanctions against those involved in Sharmahd's execution. The minister said this included the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.