02-07-2025
Mystery deaths in Tehran sparks concern over Swiss diplomats safety
The report noted that Switzerland's unique role as Washington's protecting power in Tehran 'increases the visibility of Swiss personnel to hostile services.'
Switzerland's intelligence service said Wednesday that Iranian espionage posed a growing threat to Swiss diplomats, hours after a Swiss public television investigation cast new doubt on a series of mysterious deaths involving Swiss citizens in Iran.
The Federal Intelligence Service (FIS), in its annual 'Security Switzerland 2025' assessment, listedIran alongside Russia, China, and North Korea as states that have intensified intelligence activity against the Alpine nation.
The report noted that Switzerland's unique role as Washington's protecting power inTehran 'increases the visibility of Swiss personnel to hostile services.'
The warning followed a joint investigation by Swiss public broadcasters SRF and RTS that aired late Tuesday. In the broadcast, a man who identified himself as a former officer in Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) alleged that Swiss diplomat Sylvie Brunner was pushed from the 17th-floor balcony of her Tehran residence in May 2021 after an IRGC surveillance operation went awry. Iranian authorities ruled the death a suicide but have refused to share full investigative files with Bern.
Brunner's brother, Vincent, told SRF he has 'always believed it was murder.' A Swiss-commissioned forensic review obtained by the network said her body was repatriated without several major organs, preventing comprehensive toxicology tests. The pathologist wrote that suicide was 'plausible' but added that the involvement of 'one or two persons' could not be excluded.
Brunner's fall was the first of four unexplained deaths involving Swiss citizens in Iran. In June 2023, a Swiss defense attaché collapsed in a Tehran hotel, was flown home, and died months later. Iranian officials called the death natural, but SRF reported he had been working on a sensitive assignment.
Then, in September 2023, a local employee of the Swiss Embassy was stabbed and shot in the hand while walking to work. Tehran police blamed a robbery, an explanation Swiss analysts say is rare in the heavily policed capital. In January 2025, a Swiss tourist jailed on spying allegations died in Semnan prison. Provincial Judge Mohammad Sadeq Akbari told Iranian state media that the detainee hanged himself.
In a statement to SRF, Switzerland's Foreign Ministry said it 'continues to seek full clarity' in each case but lacks investigative authority on Iranian soil. The Office of the Attorney-General closed its criminal probe into Brunner's death in November for lack of evidence; her family is considering civil action.
Several opposition lawmakers said they would raise the Tehran deaths at the next meeting of parliament's foreign-affairs committee, though no formal inquiry has been scheduled. Green Party legislator Balthasar Glättli told SRF the repeated obstructions by Iranian authorities were 'no longer acceptable' and called for a 'transparent international investigation.'
Since 1980, Switzerland has represented US interests in Iran, handling consular affairs and passing messages between Washington and Tehran. Former Swiss intelligence officials interviewed by SRF said that role makes Swiss diplomats prime targets for IRGC surveillance, especially amid escalating Israeli-Iranian tensions.
The new FIS assessment warned that regional conflict had increased the risk of 'direct pressure' on Swiss personnel abroad and urged tighter security measures at the embassy in Tehran.
