Goethe Language Institute in Tehran Closed After Attack by Authorities; Germany Summons Islamic Republic Ambassador

Less than a month after the announcement of the ban on the Islamic Center of Hamburg and 50 affiliated centers in Germany, agents of the Islamic Republic's law enforcement attacked two branches of the Goethe Institute in Tehran, forcibly removing teachers, staff, and visitors with "beatings" and tearing down the sign of this center, which operated under the German embassy. Hours after this action, Germany summoned the Islamic Republic's ambassador in Berlin. The German Foreign Ministry announced on Tuesday that it has summoned the Iranian ambassador and requested that the government of Iran immediately issue a permit to resume teaching at the Goethe Institute in Tehran. A spokesperson for the German Foreign Ministry stated in a statement: "We condemn the actions of Iranian security officials against the German language institute in Tehran. There is no justification for this action. Language exchange is fundamental to mutual understanding." According to images published on social media on Tuesday, August 30, agents of the Islamic Republic attacked the Goethe Institute in Tehran, beating and expelling teachers, staff, and visitors who were taking a German language exam. Government forces also removed the sign of this institute in Dibaji and Qolhak in northern Tehran and closed the institute, which operates under the German embassy. The Mizan news agency, the media organ of the Islamic Republic's judiciary, on Tuesday issued a statement calling the Goethe Institute "illegal centers affiliated with the German government" and accused it of "violating the laws of the country." This media entity belonging to the Islamic Republic also claimed that the two branches of the Goethe Institute had "committed multiple illegal acts and extensive financial violations," and that its closure was carried out "by judicial order." The Goethe educational institute, with years of operational experience, offers various German language courses for adults at different levels and conducts official and international language proficiency exams. According to Mizan, investigations are ongoing regarding "other German-affiliated centers" operating in Iran based on what has been reported as "violations." Meanwhile, the Telegram channel Saberinews, affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, announced that "this is a reciprocal action to close cultural and Islamic centers in Germany." The attack on the Goethe educational institute comes at a time when the head of the Health Ministry committee in the "Medical Council" stated in an interview with a Tehran-based newspaper that there has been a widespread migration of nurses to Germany, noting that in recent years, 30,000 members of hospital faculty have migrated. This action by the Iranian authorities follows reports on August 25 that German police had raided the Islamic Center of Hamburg and more than 50 affiliated centers, declaring their activities banned. Additionally, Nancy Faeser, Germany's Minister of the Interior, stated in a statement that the evidence collected in the investigations "confirmed serious suspicions to the extent that we issued the ban order today" and that "the Islamic Center of Hamburg promotes extremist and totalitarian Islamist ideology in Germany, and its affiliates also support Hezbollah terrorists." The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution in Germany had previously stated that there is evidence indicating that this Islamic center is "an important propaganda center for Iran in Europe" and "a wing of the Islamic Republic." Following the terrorist attack by Hamas on Israel on October 7 of last year, the German Bundestag unanimously requested that the Olaf Scholz government "work to close the Islamic Center of Hamburg." Voice of America had previously reported that according to a ruling by the Hamburg Administrative Court, the Islamic Center in this city, also known as the "Blue Mosque," has been classified among "extremist Islamist organizations." Hamburg government officials issued an expulsion order for "Soleiman Mousavifar," the deputy head of the "Islamic Center of Hamburg," and expelled him from Germany three months later. At that time, German officials expressed confidence that Soleiman Mousavifar supports extremist Shiite militia organizations and terrorist organizations.