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German authorities raid and ban Shia association over terrorism allegations

Germany's interior ministry has banned the Shia association Islamic Centre Hamburg (IZH), which operates the "Blue Mosque" in Hamburg, accusing it of supporting terrorism.

The association is accused of supporting the Lebanese Shia political party and military group Hezbollah.

In a statement, the interior ministry said that it "banned the Hamburg Islamic Centre and its affiliated organisations throughout Germany to date, as it is an Islamist extremist organisation pursuing anti-constitutional objectives". The German ministry added that “searches” were being carried out on Wednesday morning in 53 properties associated with the group.