TEHRAN- Iran's acting Minister of Foreign Affairs has condemned Germany's decision to shut down the Islamic Center Hamburg (IZH), labeling the move as a boon for extremists, violent organizations, and groups that support terrorism globally.

“The decision by German judicial and law enforcement authorities on inspection of premises affiliated to IZH, which is among the oldest Islamic centers [in the country] with a history of 70 years and a precious heritage of late top Shia authority Grand Ayatollah [Hossein] Boroujerdi, is an unjustified move and flouts all principles of freedom of religion and thought,” Ali Baqeri Kani wrote X.

Baqeri emphasized, “The terrorist regime of Israel, which uses every excuse to divert public opinion from the ongoing genocide against Palestinians, also welcomed the German police’s move.”

On Wednesday, German media reported that police conducted a raid on the Islamic Center Hamburg and interrogated its members. At the same time, the German Ministry of the Interior released a statement claiming that the center was pursuing "extremist" objectives and promoting "aggressive anti-Semitism”. However, the statement did not provide any specific instances. 

The Islamic Center Hamburg, one of the oldest Islamic centers in Germany, was established in 1953 with the support of Iranian cleric Ayatollah Borujerdi in the city of Hamburg. IZH’s activities include publishing magazines in German and Persian and providing religious counseling services. The Islamic organization has a library with over 6,000 titles on various Islamic topics. 

In recent months, the center has issued many statements regarding Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza and the heart-wrenching massacre of Palestinian civilians, urging the German government and other Western states to put an end to their support of the regime in order to help protect defenseless civilians in the besieged Strip.