The German foreign minister says all three of Iran's consulates in the country are to close. Berlin will also seek EU-wide sanctions. Soon afterward, Tehran summoned Germany's envoy protesting the decision as "unjust."
Deutsche Welle (DW) reported on October 31 that German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock reportedly announced on October 31 that three Iranian consulates are to be closed in Germany in response to the execution of German-Iranian dual national Jamshid Sharmahd.
The consulates are in Frankfurt, Hamburg and Munich.
"We have repeatedly and unequivocally made it clear to Tehran that the execution of a German citizen will have serious consequences," Baerbock said, announcing the closures.
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.
She condemned Iran for playing politics with hostages, accusing Tehran of seeking to use Germany's support for Israel in the widening Middle East conflict as a justification for Sharmahd's killing.
According to DW, the German Foreign Office announced on October 30 that its ambassador to Iran, Markus Potzel, had left the country for consultations in Berlin and to protest "in the strongest terms" against Iran's actions.
The 32 consulate employees will lose their rights to live in Germany and must leave the country, unless they have German citizenship.
Hours after the announcement, Iran announced that it had summoned Germany's charge d'affaires in Tehran to relay a "strong protest" against the "unjust" closures.
IRNA says the Iranian foreign ministry condemned the move as an "irrational decision" that "cannot be justified."
"The decision by the German government to stop the activities of the consulates of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Germany is an unjustified act," the head of the first office of the Iranian foreign ministry's West Europe department said, pointing out that the main function of Iranian consulates in Frankfurt, Hamburg and Munich is to provide essential consular services to Iranians living in Germany and support their interests with the host country.
