Germany is closing all Iranian consulates in the country in response to the execution of Jamshid Sharmahd, who held both Iranian and German citizenship, reported Bild. According to the foreign ministry, this concerns Tehran's representations in Frankfurt am Main, Hamburg, and Munich. The embassy in Berlin will remain open for now.
«We have conveyed our strong protest against the actions of the Iranian regime and reserve the right to take further measures», declared the ministry on the X platform.
On October 29, the German Foreign Ministry summoned the chargé d'affaires of Iran and also recalled the German ambassador in Tehran for consultations. «Following the murder of Jamshid Sharmahd by the Iranian regime, the chargé d'affaires of Iran was immediately summoned to the German Foreign Ministry today», stated the German Foreign Ministry. The German ambassador in Tehran also expressed strong protest against Sharmahd's murder. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock subsequently recalled the German ambassador to Berlin for consultations.
The European Commission also condemned the execution of Jamshid Sharmahd and threatened Tehran with consequences. «The EU is firmly against the death penalty always and under all circumstances. It is a violation of the right to life and a complete denial of human dignity», stated the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell.
The news of Sharmahd's execution sparked a wave of outrage and demands for strict measures against Iran. His daughter Gazelle Sharmahd called for «harsh punishment» for the Iranian regime. Chancellor Olaf Scholz called the execution a «scandal», and Annalena Baerbock warned of «serious consequences». CDU party leader Friedrich Merz called for a sharp reduction in diplomatic relations with Iran.
Jamshid Sharmahd, who grew up in Hanover, lived in the USA and worked in programming. In the United States, he launched a website criticizing the crimes of the Iranian regime and highlighting human rights violations.
He was detained by Iranian authorities in August 2020 after being kidnapped by agents of the Iranian regime during a transfer in Dubai. In February 2023, he was sentenced to death. Iranian authorities accused him of involvement in a mosque explosion in Shiraz in 2008, which killed 14 people and injured over 300. He was also accused of espionage.
Photo: Bild