How Germany Deported Iran's Islamist Mullah

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The head of a controversial Islamic center in Germany, who allegedly serves as a representative for Iran’s Supreme Leader, appealed his deportation order after German authorities ordered him to leave the country after the center was shut down for promoting Islamist extremism. 

57-year-old Iranian Shia Muslim cleric Mohammad Hadi Mofatteh was the head of the Islamic Center of Hamburg (IZH) in 2018 until its forced closure last July. German domestic intelligence authorities considered the IZH to be controlled by the Iranian regime.

Authorities in Hamburg issued the deportation order against Mofatteh at the end of August. The deportation order means that the cleric had to leave Germany within 14 days, or he would be deported back to Iran at his cost.

Mofatteh filed a court appeal to challenge the deportation order. His request for an urgent appeal does not necessarily suspend the order. However, a German court rejected the appeal, and Hamburg’s Interior Ministry reported that Mofatteh left Germany on the evening of September 10th.

"With the deportation of the former director of the Islamic Center of Hamburg, we have removed one of the most prominent Islamists from our country," Hamburg Interior Minister Andy Grote said, describing the action as a positive step for Germany’s national security.

The cleric is also forbidden from re-entering Germany or spending time in the country for 20 years. If he violates this order, he could face a prison sentence of up to three years.

Germany’s domestic intelligence agency said Mofatteh was considered the official representative of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei to Germany until recently. Interior ministry documents first reported by the German media indicate that he received special instructions from Khamenei. He communicated consistently with Mehdi Mostafavi, a senior aide for the Iranian Supreme Leader.

"Mofatteh is an accomplished representative of the current regime in Tehran. His family is firmly integrated into Iran's state-religious elite," the latest report by Germany’s domestic intelligence agency said.

Grote described Mofatteh as “one of Germany's most prominent Islamists,” adding in a statement that “we will continue to take a tough line against Islamists with all legal means at our disposal.”

German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said the IZH was forced to shut down last July for spreading “an Islamist, totalitarian ideology in Germany ... against human dignity, against women's rights, against an independent judiciary and against our democratic state.” The center’s facilities were closed down, and its assets were confiscated. 

Mofatteh’s departure came after Nasir Ninknejad, an Iranian cleric who served as the head of an Islamic center in Germany’s capital Berlin believed to be connected to the Iranian regime, was deported last June for similar reasons.

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