Hezbollah is reportedly using a covert network in northern Germany to extend its influence across Europe, serving as a base for fund-raising and the acquisition of arms equipment, a report published by The National revealed.

The secret chain, spanning mosques, youth groups, and scout organizations and estimated to have over 1,200 supporters, was closely supervised by Hezbollah's former leader, Hassan Nasrallah, who was assassinated in September.

Evidence from interviews, court documents, intelligence records, official correspondence, and online posts reveals a prolonged cat-and-mouse game with German authorities, a struggle that intensified after the Gaza war. A key breakthrough came from a scrap of paper linking Sheikh Hassan Murthada—a travelling cleric who reported directly to the Iran-backed leadership in Lebanon—to the network. Murthada, who organized tours across Germany and managed Lebanese associations, was jailed last year.

Investigators uncovered communications from figures known as Fadel R and Fadel Z. In one instance, Fadel R’s message—complaining about mosque renovation payments to the late Nasrallah—was exposed during Murthada’s trial. Alleged to be a trained Hezbollah operative, Fadel R is accused of facilitating the recruitment of Shiite clerics, while Fadel Z was detained for allegedly acquiring drone parts for use against Israel.

Beyond clerical oversight, the network also reaches into youth organisations. In Bremen, a group modeled on Hezbollah’s Imam Al Mahdi Scouts—the Al Mustafa Scouts—wore uniforms in red, green, and yellow and even featured on Hezbollah-affiliated Al Manar TV. A police raid on a local building uncovered documents and laptop files linking this group to broader network activities. Meanwhile, city officials are still assessing whether children at the Al Mustafa Society have been radicalized.

Murthada’s personal files, including a nine-page report on concealing funds for a mosque renovation and proposals from Reza Ramezani of the Islamic Centre of Hamburg, suggest that roughly 1,250 Hezbollah sympathisers operate in Germany without a formal national structure.

“These networks do a variety of different things, including raising funds and recruiting people,” said former FBI counter-terrorism analyst Matthew Levitt.

The investigation also highlights the role of the Blue Mosque in Hamburg, alleged to be an Iranian outpost spreading propaganda and supporting Hezbollah activities. In 2022, the mosque’s deputy head, Seyed Mousavifar, was deported to Iran for alleged Hezbollah links, with security services tying him to the banned charity Humans for Humans. The mosque subsequently sued Hamburg intelligence chiefs for labelling it an Iranian outpost, and in court, authorities failed to substantiate claims of 50 Hezbollah supporters attending Friday prayers.

The crackdown reached a breaking point last July when Interior Minister Nancy Faeser banned the Islamic Centre of Hamburg and closed the Blue Mosque’s gates. Police raided 53 properties across Germany—in Bremen, Lower Saxony, and beyond—in their hunt for network affiliates. Worshippers, such as German convert Christian Muhammad Jawad Sandow, maintain that they are caught in a political standoff and are using their Thursday Du’a’ Kumayl chants and Friday gatherings as peaceful protests, even as police relocated them to avoid disturbing local residents.

Despite recent actions, experts note that German authorities must continue gathering evidence of active terrorist support before shutting down entities entirely.

“When they get information that people are being radicalised to violence, the German authorities have shown a predilection to act,” Levitt said.

Meanwhile, intelligence agencies are meticulously tracking the movement of suspects, ensuring that if someone disappears from Hamburg, they are quickly located elsewhere.

Although the Islamic Centre of Hamburg is now suing the Interior Ministry in a bid to block the ban, the investigation underscores that while Hezbollah’s network has not vanished, its long-established foreign financial ties may now become even more critical. With Hezbollah’s infrastructure in Lebanon in disarray, the group appears set to rely increasingly on its overseas illicit networks.