• German politicians warn of possible Iranian attacks in Europe following publication of a list targeting Western politicians, including Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
• Lawmaker Roderich Kiesewetter accuses Iran of planning targeted killings and terrorist attacks in the West to strengthen its position domestically and internationally.

German politicians have warned of possible attacks in Europe after an Iranian newspaper published a call for retaliation against Western politicians, including Chancellor Friedrich Merz.

"I assume that the terrorist regime has been planning and preparing targeted killings and terrorist attacks in the West, including in Germany, for some time now," Roderich Kiesewetter, a lawmaker from Chancellor Friedrich Merz's conservative party, was quoted as saying by the business newspaper Handelsblatt on Monday.

He accused Tehran of using radical ideology and terrorism to strengthen its position at home and abroad.

The mass-circulation Iranian daily newspaper Hamshahri published an infographic titled "A list of those who must await the retribution of the Iranian people," naming several Western politicians, including Merz. The graphic was no longer available online on Monday.

Marc Henrichmann, chairman of the German parliament's intelligence oversight committee, said the publication highlighted the need for increased vigilance, warning that Iranian intelligence services could also carry out operations in Europe. He said authorities were particularly concerned about so-called "disposable agents" recruited for individual missions.

Merz's junior coalition partner, the centre-left Social Democratic Party, also sees a heightened threat level, according to lawmaker Sebastian Fiedler. However, deputy government spokesman Steffen Meyer said the report had been noted but declined to comment further.

Meanwhile, opposition Green Party lawmaker Konstantin von Notz said such a list would likely not have appeared without approval from Iran's leadership and described the threats as a new level of escalation.