Following the death of Iranian-German dual citizen Jamshid Sharmahd, Germany has protested Iran and sought talks with its ambassador in Berlin.
After being kidnapped in Dubai in 2020, Sharmahd, a U.S. resident, was charged with terrorism in a trial that was heavily condemned by human rights organizations Germany and the United States.
On X, previously Twitter, the German Foreign Ministry announced the withdrawal, claiming that Germany’s “sharp protest” over the execution had been sent to Iran’s charge d’affaires in Berlin.
The ministry also stated that it had the power to take “further measures,” although it gave no further explanation.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock called German Ambassador Markus Potzel back to Berlin for additional talks after the ambassador personally condemned Sharmahd’s death to Iran’s foreign minister.
On Monday, Sharmahd, 69, was put to death. Iran’s judiciary accused him of planning the 2008 mosque explosion, which killed 14 people and injured over 200 more.
Tehran also charged him with leaking classified information concerning Revolutionary Guard missile locations.
The accusations were strongly refuted by Sharmahd’s family, who claimed that his prosecution and imprisonment were politically driven.
Following the breakdown of its 2015 nuclear agreement with international countries, including Germany, Iran has already targeted other dissidents overseas.
Iranian dissidents overseas have recently been deceived or abducted and sent back to Iran, where they face harsh trials and, often, execution.
Tehran asserted that Sharmahd used the Kingdom Assembly of Iran, an organization dedicated to toppling the Iranian government, to arrange the 2008 bombing and other assaults.
Iran also charged him with disclosing “classified information” about military installations when he appeared on television in 2017.
The circumstances of Sharmahd’s kidnapping are unclear.
In 2020, he was in Dubai to go to India on a business trip involving his software firm.
His most recent communication was sent on July 28, 2020.
His phone’s location data later revealed that it travelled south from Dubai to Al Ain in the United Arab Emirates before entering Oman.
The phone signal was traced to the port city of Sohar, Oman, on July 30, where it abruptly went silent.
Iranian police released a picture of the dissident wearing a blindfold two days after announcing that Sharmahd had been apprehended in what they called a “complex operation.”
After Sharmahd was given a death sentence in 2023, the episode led to Germany expelling two Iranian ambassadors, indicating escalating tensions between the two countries over his treatment.
Germany and other human rights organizations have condemned Sharmahd’s death, calling the trial unfair and a breach of international law.
Rights groups have called on international powers to make Iran responsible for its conduct, denouncing Tehran for targeting dissidents and using forced confessions to support executions.
