All Iranian consulates will be closed following the execution of a German-Iranian citizen in Tehran.
This was declared by German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, Politico reported.
Jamshid Sharmad, an opposition activist, was sentenced to death in 2020 by the regime in Tehran on terrorism charges. He was executed on October 28.
"We have repeatedly made it clear to Iran that the execution of a German citizen will have serious consequences. That is why I have decided to close the three Iranian consulates general in Frankfurt am Main, Munich and Hamburg," Baerbock said.
The closures will affect 32 consulate employees, according to a foreign ministry official in Berlin. He says the last time Germany took such "drastic but effective" measures was after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
However, the Iranian embassy in Berlin will remain open, as well as the German embassy in Tehran. According to the official, Berlin does not want to sever diplomatic ties completely.
Meanwhile, Baerbock announced that diplomatic relations with Iran have reached "more than a low point." She called on EU members to do more at the European level.
"I’m pushing for the Revolutionary Guards to be listed as a terrorist organisation in Brussels," the foreign minister stated. | BGNES
