Iran Accused of Expanding Covert Campaign Against Dissidents in Europe

Recent investigative reporting by leading European newspapers has revealed extensive evidence that Iranian intelligence services are running a covert campaign of surveillance, intimidation, and coercion against Iranian dissidents living in Europe, particularly in Germany. The investigation details how Tehran has built a transnational network aimed at monitoring opposition groups and pressuring political refugees through threats directed at their families inside Iran.

The reports reconstruct the case of Javid Navari, a 48-year-old Iranian teacher from Shiraz who fled to Germany with his mother and brother seeking asylum. Shortly after arriving, Navari was contacted via WhatsApp by an individual using the alias “Mahdi,” communicating from an Iranian phone number. The message made clear that Iranian intelligence had already contacted Navari’s relatives back home, signaling that the regime was prepared to exert pressure across borders.

According to the investigation, such tactics are systematic. Iranian intelligence agents reportedly coerce exiles by threatening their families in Iran, confiscating relatives’ phones, summoning them for interrogation, or subjecting them to harassment. Those forced into cooperation are reportedly referred to internally as “disposable agents.” In some cases, threats escalate to explicit intimidation, including threats of sexual violence, highlighting the severity of the methods used.

Victims are instructed to attend opposition rallies in Europe, identify participants, collect names and contact information, and report on internal activities. At the same time, they are warned that revealing these contacts to German authorities could jeopardize their asylum claims. Cooperation, they are told, ensures silence from Tehran; refusal could lead to retaliation against family members or allegations that undermine their refugee status.

Javad Dabiran, a spokesperson for the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), said the organization documented at least 97 such incidents in 2025 alone, describing the escalation as unprecedented. The NCRI, an umbrella coalition of Iranian opposition groups, has become a primary target due to its visibility, public demonstrations, and international advocacy.

German authorities have broadly confirmed the threat. The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) acknowledged a sustained and elevated level of Iranian espionage activity, warning that Tehran pursues its objectives with determination and methods that may amount to state-sponsored terrorism.

The investigation draws parallels with earlier cases elsewhere in Europe. In 2018, Albanian authorities thwarted an alleged Iranian-linked terrorist plot targeting members of the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (MEK). Investigations identified operatives connected to the Nejat Society, which critics describe as a front organization linked to Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence. The group has since established a presence in Albania, where it has been accused of conducting surveillance, spreading disinformation, and harassing Iranian dissidents.

Some individuals who cooperated with Iranian intelligence in Albania have later come forward. In a complaint submitted to the United Nations in March 2025, Rahman Mohammadian described the Nejat Society as a cover organization used for intelligence operations, harassment of dissidents’ families, and incitement against opposition groups. The BfV’s assessment that Iranian methods amount to state terrorism has been cited as reinforcing these claims.

These overseas operations coincide with an intensified crackdown inside Iran. According to the investigation, more than 1,000 executions were carried out in the first nine months of 2025, the highest number since the 1990s. The NCRI reports that at least 17 political prisoners currently face imminent execution for alleged links to opposition movements. Participation in opposition activities abroad has, in some cases, been classified by Iranian courts as espionage or blasphemy—charges that carry the death penalty—effectively extending repression beyond Iran’s borders.

The findings raise urgent questions for European governments about the protection of political refugees, the integrity of democratic space, and the appropriate response to what critics describe as systematic transnational repression conducted by the Iranian state.