Overview
- Federal prosecutors filed criminal charges on Thursday, May 21, 2026, against a Danish national identified as Ali S. and an Afghan national identified as Tawab M. for involvement in attempted murder.
- Prosecutors allege Ali S. served as an agent for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and maintained close ties to its Quds Force while collecting intelligence in early 2025 on Josef Schuster, Volker Beck, and two Jewish grocers in Berlin.
- The indictment says Ali S. contacted Tawab M. in May 2025 and that Tawab agreed to obtain a weapon for a third party and help arrange an assassination attempt on Volker Beck.
- Germany summoned Iran’s ambassador after the arrests and charges, and the Iranian embassy rejected the accusations as baseless and dangerous while investigations by German and Danish authorities continue.
- The case frames alleged foreign intelligence-directed plotting against Germany’s Jewish community, raises questions about transnational IRGC operations, and leaves legal and security follow-up pending as prosecutors and courts move forward.