German police raid suspected pro-Hezbollah Islamist groups

German authorities conducted nationwide searches of 54 locations across seven federal states connected to the Islamic Center of Hamburg (IZH) on Thursday morning, the Interior Ministry said.

In a statement, the ministry said the IZH was suspected of “acting against constitutional order” and of “supporting [the] terror organization Hezbollah.”

No arrests were made during the raids, which were carried out to secure evidence on the suspicion that the Hamburg center and affiliated groups back the activities of Hezbollah.

In 2020, Germany designated Hezbollah a terrorist organization and banned its activities on German soil.

Interior Minister Nancy Faeser of the center-left Social Democrats (SPD) said the IZH had long been under surveillance by German intelligence services and has been categorized as “Islamist.”

“We have the Islamist scene in our sights,” she said following the early morning raids.

“Especially now, at a time when many Jews feel particularly threatened, it’s important to state: we do not tolerate Islamist propaganda or antisemitic and anti-Israel agitation,” Faeser added.

Read more: Deutsche Welle