Death threat against Friedrich Merz; "High level of threat"

It was an extremely disturbing piece of news that emerged from Iran over the weekend: the ultra-conservative newspaper Hamshahri published what was essentially a wanted poster online on Saturday, featuring portraits of 13 Western politicians and stating that they would pay for the death of former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Among those 13 politicians was German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.

Alongside Merz, the poster also featured, among others, U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Images of French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni were also included. All of them were shown in edited images wearing orange prison clothing associated with U.S. prisons. European countries had supported U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran since the end of February, including by granting overflight rights.

Chancellor said in early March: "The mullah regime is nearing its end"

After the start of those strikes in early March, Merz said that the German government shared the relief felt by many Iranians and Iranian women that the mullah regime was now approaching its end. He added:

"With the United States and Israel, we share the interest that the terror of this regime comes to an end and that its dangerous nuclear and ballistic weapons programs are stopped."

However, the regime has not come closer to collapse so far.

Ali Khamenei, the supreme leader, was killed at the very beginning of the attacks. His son, Mojtaba Khamenei, became his successor. In a written statement, he announced "retaliation" over his father's death.

In an article published online by the high-circulation newspaper on Saturday, it stated: "Retaliation is inevitable. The criminals will take their desire for a peaceful death with them to the grave." The graphic was not published in the printed Sunday edition of Hamshahri, and at the beginning of the week it was also removed from the internet.

Government politicians: We must expect Iranian attacks

Nevertheless, the graphic caused concern among German politicians from the governing parties, as well as among the opposition Greens.

Mark Henrichmann of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), chairman of the Bundestag’s parliamentary oversight body responsible for monitoring Germany’s intelligence services, said:

"We must assume that Iranian intelligence services are operating and carrying out attacks in Europe as well."

Security authorities are particularly concerned about so-called "one-time-use agents". These individuals are recruited solely to carry out a single attack.

KAY NIETFELD / AFP / Profimedia

The German government initially responded with notable restraint. At the government’s regular press conference on Monday, deputy spokesperson Steffen Meyer said only that the government had taken note of the call, but he did not want to comment further on the death threat.

Germany: 180 people considered a potential threat

One thing is clear, however: security experts have long not ruled out possible terrorist activities by Iran in Germany.

Authorities estimate that around 180 people in Germany are active either for Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guard or for its intelligence service.

In response to a question from the online portal Euractiv, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution said in May that Iranian intelligence has long been prepared to use methods that can be equated with state terrorism.

"These range from threats against specific individuals to surveillance measures aimed at preparing possible attacks," the agency stated.

The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution also stated that Iran’s security apparatus is currently significantly weakened due to the attacks that are still ongoing inside the country.

However, there are concerns that Tehran could redirect its activities abroad once pressure on the regime eases—for example, after the official end of the war.