German authorities announced Tuesday the arrest of a man in Denmark suspected of working for Iranian intelligence services to spy on Jewish organizations and individuals in Berlin.
The Danish suspect had "received an order from an Iranian intelligence service to gather information in Berlin on Jewish sites and specific Jewish individuals." The intelligence was intended to support further operations, potentially including attacks, the German federal prosecutor's office said in a statement.
The suspect spied on three properties in June, "probably with the aim of preparing other intelligence activities in Germany, likely including terrorist attacks against Jewish targets," the prosecutor said.
Identified as Ali S., the alleged spy was arrested last Thursday in Aarhus, a port city in eastern Denmark, on an arrest warrant issued by German authorities, who have requested his extradition.
According to the German media outlet Der Spiegel, the spy, of Afghan origin, allegedly photographed buildings, including the headquarters of the German-Israeli Society, allegedly on behalf of the Al-Quds Force, an elite unit of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps.
Germany has remained on high alert for potential attacks against Jews following the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
In a related case, German police in September 2024 killed a young Austrian Muslim, thought to be radicalized and who was reportedly planning an attack on the Israeli consulate in Munich. Months earlier, a German-Iranian was sentenced to prison for planning to set fire to a synagogue in Bochum in 2022, a plot authorities say was orchestrated with the help of "Iranian state agencies."