Hamburg Court Jails Two Men Over Iran Plot Against Jewish Figures

A Hamburg court sentenced two men on 15 October 2026 over an Iranian intelligence operation targeting prominent Jewish and pro Israel figures. Ali S. received eight years and six months in prison, and Tawab M. four years and six months.

The intended targets included Josef Schuster, president of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, and Volker Beck, president of the German-Israeli Society and a former Green Party member of the Bundestag. Both men had been placed under surveillance in preparation for possible attacks.

From surveillance to attack preparations

German court reporting identifies the tribunal as Hamburg's Higher Regional Court. The legal publication beck aktuell reported that judges found Ali S. had worked for Iranian Revolutionary Guard intelligence and maintained close contact with its Quds Force, the branch responsible for foreign operations.

Officers tasked him in early 2025 with collecting information on Schuster and Beck. He subsequently examined locations in Berlin, including a kosher food business against which an arson attack was being prepared.

The operation therefore concerned both public figures and a civilian Jewish business. The judgment addressed preparations for violence, rather than a completed killing of either named target.

The second defendant's role

Prosecutors said Ali S. approached Tawab M. by May 2025 about an attack on Beck. Their account described an effort to recruit another person and obtain a weapon for the planned operation.

The charges included intelligence activity and attempted participation in murder and serious arson. That legal wording matters: attempted participation in a planned murder is not the same allegation as a gunman carrying out an attempted shooting. The two defendants faced different roles and received different sentences.

AFP identified Ali S. as a Danish national and Tawab M. as an Afghan national. Both were living in Denmark, while the people and business targeted by the operation were in Germany.

Arrests in Denmark, trial in Hamburg

Ali S. was arrested in Aarhus on 26 June 2025. Tawab M. was arrested in Denmark on 5 November 2025. Both were subsequently extradited to Germany and held in custody.

The trial began on 26 June 2026 and ran for 19 hearing days, beck aktuell reported. The prison terms matched the prosecution's requests, while defence lawyers had sought acquittals. Iran International's courtroom coverage said both verdicts could be appealed.

Germany summoned Iran's ambassador after Ali S.'s arrest. Iran rejected the allegations at the time, describing them as a diversion from the war against it.

The Iranian organisation behind the case

The Quds Force is part of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a central institution in Iran's military and security system. Its foreign operations role helps explain why a criminal proceeding in Hamburg has significance beyond Germany.

The European Union formally added the IRGC to its terrorist list on 19 February 2026. That decision brought asset freezes and restrictions on making funds available to the organisation. The Hamburg convictions concern the defendants' conduct, while the EU designation is a separate legal measure against the institution.