BERLIN (AP) — Germany deported dozens of Afghan men to their homeland on Friday, the second time it has done so since the Taliban returned to power and the first since a new government pledging a tougher line on migration took office in Berlin.
German authorities said a flight took off Friday morning carrying 81 Afghans, all of them men who had previously come to judicial authorities’ attention and had asylum applications rejected.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the deportation was carried out with the help of Qatar and was preceded by weeks of negotiations. He also said there were contacts with Afghanistan, but didn’t elaborate.
More than 10 months ago, Germany’s previous government deported Afghan nationals to their homeland for the first time since the Taliban returned to power in 2021. Then-Chancellor Olaf Scholz vowed to step up deportations of failed asylum-seekers.
Merz noted that, while diplomatic relations between Germany and Afghanistan have not formally been broken off, Berlin does not recognize the Taliban government in Kabul.
“The decisive question is how one deals with this regime, and it will remain at technical coordination until further notice,” he said at a news conference in Berlin. Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, visiting Paris, said that “there is no expansion of relations and no recognition of the regime there.”
The Interior Ministry said the government aims to carry out more deportations to Afghanistan, but didn’t specify when that might happen.
Just after he took office in early May, the government stationed more police at the border — stepping up border checks introduced by the Scholz government — and said some asylum-seekers trying to enter Europe’s biggest economy would be turned away. It has also suspended family reunions for many migrants.
Asylum applications declined from 329,120 in 2023 to 229,751 last year and have continued to fall this year.
“You can see from the figures that we are obviously on the right path, but we are not yet at the end of that path,” Merz said.
The Afghan deportation flight took off hours before German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt discussed migration with counterparts from five neighboring countries — France, Poland, Austria, Denmark and the Czech Republic — as well as the European Union’s commissioner responsible for migration, Magnus Brunner. Dobrindt hosted the meeting on the Zugspitze, Germany’s highest peak, on the Austrian border.
Dobrindt said the countries agree that the European migration system “must be hardened and sharpened,” with faster asylum proceedings and “return hubs” outside the EU.
“We wanted to send a signal that Germany is no longer sitting in the brakeman’s cab on migration issues in Europe, but is in the locomotive,” Dobrindt said.
Germany deports 81 Afghan men to their homeland in 2nd flight since the Taliban’s return
Germany’s interior minister has hosted five of his European counterparts to discuss ways of tightening the region’s asylum rules, as his country deported 81 Afghans to their Taliban-controlled homeland.
The European Union’s immigration system needed to be “tougher and stricter”, Minister Alexander Dobrindt said after Friday’s meeting in southern Germany with the interior ministers of France, Poland, Austria, the Czech Republic and Denmark, as well as EU Migration Commissioner Magnus Brunner.
The cohort issued a five-page communique on their aims, which included the establishment of “return hubs” for holding people outside the EU, enabling asylum procedures in third countries, and allowing deportations to Afghanistan and Syria as standard practice.
All measures would require approval from Brussels.
“When we analyse what has been agreed here, it’s lofty ambitions, but not much detail about how they intend to pursue what’s in these five pages,” said Al Jazeera’s Dominic Kane, reporting from Berlin.
Ministers, he said, had talked about “the sorts of things that they agree on, but they know they can’t implement them themselves as unilateral decisions.”
Speaking after the meeting, Dobrindt said, “We wanted to send a signal that Germany is no longer sitting in the brakeman’s cab on migration issues in Europe, but is in the locomotive.”
Afghans deported
Hours before the meeting, Germany demonstrated just how serious it was about cracking down on migration by sending 81 Afghan nationals back to their homeland, prompting an outcry from rights organisations.
Amnesty International criticised the deportations, saying the situation in Afghanistan was “catastrophic” and that “extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances and torture are commonplace”.
Europe’s top economy had stopped deportations to Afghanistan and closed its embassy in Kabul following the Taliban movement’s return to power in 2021.
But Berlin resumed expulsions last year when the previous government of Olaf Scholz expelled 28 convicted Afghans.
Current Chancellor Friedrich Merz defended the expulsions of the 81 Afghan men, saying he was “grateful” to be able to deliver on promises made when entering government in May.
None of those deported “had a residence status any more. All asylum applications were legally rejected without further legal recourse”, he said at a news conference.
Bavaria state’s Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann said 15 of the deported Afghans had been incarcerated for crimes, including murder and manslaughter, sexual offences and property crimes.
The state of Baden-Wuerttemberg said 13 Afghans deported from there had been jailed for crimes including homicide, bodily harm, drug offences and serious arson.
In the wake of the announcement, the United Nations said no one should be sent back to Afghanistan, whatever their status.
The UN human rights commissioner called for an “immediate halt to the forcible return of all Afghan refugees and asylum-seekers”, highlighting the risks faced by returnees.
Source: Al Jazeera and news agencies
Germany and EU allies push for ‘tougher, stricter’ asylum rules
They were found to be eligible for sanctuary in the UK nine months ago due to his father’s former service alongside UK special forces – but they are still waiting, in fear for their long-term safety, to be brought to the UK.
On Tuesday, along with thousands of others, he received an email from the Ministry of Defence warning him that, due to a data loss in 2022, “some of the personal data associated with this email address may have been compromised”.
As he typed the family’s application reference number into the government’s checking system, a bright red warning sign flashed up alerting him that they were affected by the huge Afghan data leak, which has led to the names and contact information of 18,700 people with links to British forces being shared “in error”.
The catastrophic breach of Afghan applications to the MoD’s resettlement scheme was inadvertently shared by a member of the armed forces, potentially putting 100,000 people at risk of reprisals from the Taliban.
Rayan is one of around 2,000 people who have been evacuated from Afghanistan but haven’t yet arrived in the UK, to have been affected by the leak.
Learning that the breach could have put his family at risk was “an awful experience”, he told The Independent. The Taliban has already burnt down their family home and arrested some family members because of his father’s previous role.
He said: “At the moment, we are in fear of emails from the UK, we are afraid that they will reject us. I saw it said that some data had been released. The second email said we could check if our data had been breached.
“When I checked it, I found that our data was linked. It was a really awful experience. I feel like a ball in a football pitch with everyone kicking us from one side to the other”.
Rayan and his family have been waiting nine months for the UK to relocate them to safety (The Independent)
Now he is desperate for an answer to one urgent question: when will they be brought to safety?
The need to leave Pakistan is pressing. Three months ago, the family were arrested by Pakistani police and taken to a deportation centre, sparking fears they would be returned to the hands of the Taliban, he said.
Speaking from his hotel in Islamabad, which is being used by the UK government to house Afghans eligible for sanctuary in Britain, he said: “We have seen 24 families go from Pakistan to the UK but our family has been waiting here. Our visas expired, and at least three times, Pakistani police have tried to capture us.
“Once they arrested all of our family and took us to a deportation centre in Pakistan. It was a Sunday three months ago at around 10pm.
“We were inside our rooms and the manager told us they were asking about our visas. I showed them our permissions from the British High Commission in Pakistan and they said that was unacceptable.”
Rayan said he and his family were then taken to a deportation centre where they were threatened with being sent back to Afghanistan the next day.
Thousands of Afghans were evacuated in a covert operation after the catastrophic data leak, which led to the names and contact information of 18,700 people being shared in error (The Independent)
Luckily, he was able to pay a police officer to use his phone, and, after several attempts, got through to their caseworker, who confirmed their eligibility to be there.
“After around 30 hours, a diplomat came from the British High Commission and we were allowed out,” he said.
In total, 16 members of his family are now sharing three hotel rooms as they wait for relocation. Two babies have been born in the time that they have spent in limbo in Pakistan, one aged four months and the other seven months.
Each room has only a single bed, he said, leaving the rest of the family to sleep on mattresses on the floor.
With no money and their belongings lost to the fire, they have had to rely on the kindness of others to get by.
“When our children were born, we asked our caseworker if they could help with some supplies for them. We told them that our house had been burned down by the Taliban and we didn’t have any money. The weather was really cold in Pakistan and we didn’t have the money to buy things for our child.
“Unfortunately, we had to go to the other Afghan families, who helped us with some clothes for our daughter. They were a big size, but we didn’t have any other choice”.
When he first received the email from the MoD’s Afghan caseworker team on Tuesday, he was worried it might be retracting his family’s offer of safety.
But there is still no end in sight for the family, who must now continue their agonising wait to find out when they can come to the UK.
As well as those stuck in Pakistan, there are 5,400 people impacted by the data breach who the government has issued invitations to come to the UK, but are still in Afghanistan.
The government has been using hotels in Pakistan to house Afghans eligible to come to the UK for some years. However, the pathway through the country will not be available indefinitely.
In an MoD brief sent to the armed forces minister Luke Pollard on 3 December 2024, officials advised that “the government of Pakistan has stated its desire to end relocations through Pakistan by the end of 2025”.
Referring to the secret resettlement scheme set up in the wake of the data breach, they said: “It is no longer a safe assumption that we will enjoy the support of GOP [Pakistan’s government] for the duration of the programme”.
The Ministry of Defence has been contacted for comment.
‘We were lucky to escape Afghanistan alive – nine months later, we’re still waiting to be brought to safety’
As the 15-day deadline set by Tajik authorities for Afghan refugees nears its end, reports indicate that the government has already begun forcefully deporting more individuals. According to multiple sources, over 150 people were rounded up from local markets and public areas yesterday and deported from the country.
Among those deported are men, women, elderly individuals, and minors under the age of 18. In many cases, families have been separated—children deported while their parents remain in Tajikistan, or spouses removed while their partners and children are left behind. The abrupt and aggressive nature of the deportations has caused widespread distress among the Afghan refugee community.
What has raised particular concern is that the majority of those targeted hold legal refugee status. Many are registered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and possess valid refugee cards. Several individuals are also in the process of being resettled to Canada, having active asylum applications under review.
While the real motive behind the forced deportations remains unclear and has not been officially disclosed by the Tajik government, many observers believe it may be linked to recent geopolitical developments. In particular, Russia’s formal recognition of the Taliban administration in Afghanistan appears to have influenced policy shifts across the region. Tajikistan, long known for harboring Afghan opposition figures and anti-Taliban sentiment, may now be aligning itself more closely with Moscow’s stance. Some analysts suggest that the presence of anti-Taliban groups in Tajikistan has prompted the government to begin expelling Afghan refugees as a gesture of regional alignment and political repositioning.
Most Afghan refugees in Tajikistan are resettled in Wahdat, a district located approximately 20 kilometers east of the capital, Dushanbe. Formerly known as Kofarnihon, Wahdat is one of the more densely populated areas of the country and has become a central hub for refugee communities. Despite its proximity to the capital, Wahdat has limited infrastructure and resources to support large populations, making the sudden deportations even more devastating for the displaced families and their host communities.
In response to the escalating situation, several online petitions have begun circulating, urging the Canadian government to expedite resettlement processes or initiate emergency evacuations for those whose asylum cases are already under review. Human rights advocates and refugee support groups have described the situation as chaotic and alarming, calling for immediate international intervention to prevent further harm to vulnerable Afghan families.
Despite the presence of the United Nations and other international advocacy organizations in Tajikistan, their influence appears limited. The Tajik government has largely ignored calls for compliance with international treaties and refugee protection standards, raising concerns about the effectiveness of international oversight and the lack of accountability in ongoing deportations.
This latest wave of deportations follows a controversial 15-day ultimatum issued earlier this month by the Tajik government, ordering all Afghan refugees to leave the country. As reported previously, the directive has triggered widespread fear and confusion, even among those holding valid residency permits and refugee documentation. Tajik authorities have since intensified efforts to detain and deport Afghan nationals—many of whom are former civil servants, military personnel, or individuals associated with the previous Afghan government—despite ongoing asylum applications and the well-documented risks they face upon return to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan.
Tajikistan Begins Forced Deportation of Afghan Refugees Ahead of Expiry of 15-Day Deadline
The Islamabad High Court has rejected a petition filed by a defense lawyer seeking to halt the forced deportation of Afghan migrants, stating that it does not intervene in government policies.
According to Pakistan’s Express Tribune newspaper, the court dismissed the petition on Thursday, July 17. The petition was submitted by lawyer Umer Ijaz Gilani on behalf of a coalition known as the Supporters of Afghan Migrants.
In its response, the court stated that reviewing or interfering with government decisions does not fall within its judicial authority. It emphasized that immigration policies are within the jurisdiction of the executive branch. This ruling comes amid a renewed wave of forced deportations of Afghan migrants, with thousands already being compelled to leave Pakistan.
In recent months, Pakistan has adopted a tougher stance toward Afghan migrants. Since last year, the government has begun deporting thousands of undocumented — and in some cases, even registered — Afghan refugees. This policy has drawn widespread international criticism, with human rights organizations repeatedly expressing concern about the humanitarian conditions faced by Afghan migrants in Pakistan.
With the rejection of this petition, the deportation process is expected to continue — and possibly intensify — in the coming weeks. Rights groups warn that many deportees may face serious risks upon return to Afghanistan, especially given the current socio-political instability there.
As Pakistan proceeds with its migration policy, the international community is likely to keep a close eye on the humanitarian consequences. Continued pressure from global human rights bodies may influence future decisions, but for now, the government’s stance remains unchanged.
Islamabad High Court Rejects Petition to Stop Forced Deportation of Afghan Migrants
The total length of this strategic railway is reported to be 681 kilometers through Afghanistan.
Following the launch of the TAPI project, Afghanistan is now witnessing another major stride in regional connectivity, the “Afghan-Trans” project. This is the second and largest regional initiative under the Islamic Emirate, aimed at linking Central Asia with South Asia.
Most recently, the feasibility study agreement for the project was signed in Kabul between Afghanistan’s Ministry of Public Works, Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Transport, and Pakistan’s Railway Authority.
Mohammad Ashraf Haqshenas, spokesperson for the Ministry of Public Works, said: “The feasibility study agreement for this project was signed yesterday in the presence of officials from all three countries at the Presidential Palace of the Islamic Emirate. The railway line will start in Uzbekistan, pass through Afghanistan, and connect to Pakistan, with about 680 kilometers of the route crossing Afghan territory.”
The total length of this strategic railway is reported to be 681 kilometers through Afghanistan, linking Central Asian countries to the ports of Gwadar and Karachi in Pakistan.
Afghan officials believe this project could significantly boost Afghanistan’s role in regional economic relations and offer opportunities for increased trade, transit, and infrastructure development.
Economic expert Abdul Zahoor Mudaber said: “Standard transportation forms the foundation of a thriving economy. One way we can grow the economy is by becoming a transit bridge between countries, especially between Central and South Asia. Afghan-Trans can serve as a strong link between the two regions.”
According to analysts, a new chapter of regional cooperation centered around Afghanistan could reshape the regional economic map, enhance trade, increase transit revenues, create thousands of jobs, and improve infrastructure within the country.
Economic analyst Abdul Nasir Rashtia stated: “The Afghan-Trans project is of great strategic importance to Afghanistan and the region. Once completed, it could lead to deeper regional integration, which would bring lasting peace and stability. Afghanistan’s geostrategic location enables it to connect Central and South Asia, and the project’s implementation will raise investor confidence in the country.”
The estimated construction cost of the project ranges between $4.8 and $7 billion, and it is expected to be completed by 2027. Once finished, Afghanistan will transform from a landlocked country into a major regional economic corridor.
Afghan-Trans Project Launched to Link Central and South Asia
Fitrat added that publishing such reports aims to intimidate specific individuals and their families.
The deputy spokesperson of the Islamic Emirate has stated that the leader’s amnesty decree ensures the safety of all, and no one is being prosecuted for their past actions or roles.
This response from the Islamic Emirate comes after fears emerged following the leak of information by the UK Ministry of Defence, which revealed identities of former Afghan collaborators, raising concerns they could be arrested in Afghanistan.
Hamidullah Fitrat dismissed such reports as false, saying:
“Intelligence agencies have no need to monitor those who have been granted amnesty. All relevant documents are available in the Ministries of Defence and Interior and the General Directorate of Intelligence, and there is no need to rely on political records from the UK.”
Fitrat added that publishing such reports aims to intimidate specific individuals and their families.
The UK government has faced internal controversy after secretly relocating 4,500 Afghans following the data breach. That relocation program has now been shut down.
The leaked data included the records of 19,000 Afghans who had worked with British forces in the past.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer recently said the responsibility for the leak lies with the previous government.
Data Leak in the UK: Islamic Emirate Emphasizes Amnesty Decree
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation has also assured that necessary facilities are being provided in all camps for deportees.
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has assured that healthcare and basic services are being provided to Afghans returning from Iran.
UNICEF’s country representative told TOLOnews that efforts are underway to expand support for returnees, particularly in areas where they are settling permanently.
Tajuddin Oyewale, UNICEF’s Representative in Afghanistan, said: “For those in primary school, we are able to link them to primary school. For those who need healthcare, we are able to link them to healthcare and increase our output in those areas. But increasing those outputs also comes at cost for us because we are also faced with funding crisis. So we are doing as much as we can with a lot of efficiency to be able to meet the need.”
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation has also assured that necessary facilities are being provided in all camps for deportees.
Abdul Rahman Rashid, deputy minister, said: “When they reach their home provinces, we will establish camps and residential communities for them to ensure shelter and long-term housing.”
However, families recently deported from Iran are calling for shelter and sufficient food for their children while staying in a camp in Kabul.
Fatima, a mother who was born in Iran and returned to Afghanistan after 26 years in exile, has made a sunshade out of a sack for her children. As she speaks about her children’s condition, her voice chokes with emotion.
Fatima said: “My daughter was in 7th grade and was supposed to enter 8th this year. When I look at her, my heart breaks. She says, ‘Mother, how are we supposed to live in Afghanistan?’ I don’t even know if I can provide them with a single piece of bread.”
Her daughter Khadija stated: “We have neither a house nor anywhere to go. At least in Iran, we had a roof over our heads.”
Her husband, Faizullah, said: “My only hope was that my children would study and earn degrees. I was ready to work hard even beg for food just so my kids could succeed. Sadly, that dream never came true.”
This comes as the forced deportation of Afghan migrants from neighboring countries, especially Iran and Pakistan, has intensified in recent years.
UNICEF Assures Support for Afghan Returnees Amid Growing Deportations
The U.S. defense secretary called the 2021 Afghanistan withdrawal a tragic disaster, blaming it for weakening America’s global position and influence.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has sharply criticized the Biden administration’s 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan, calling it a “tragic and catastrophic” failure that weakened America’s global standing. Speaking at a defense summit in Florida, Hegseth said the chaotic exit not only claimed the lives of 13 U.S. service members and 170 Afghan civilians but also emboldened adversaries worldwide.
According to Fox News, Hegseth claimed that the suicide bombing at Kabul airport during the evacuation was a direct result of poor political decisions. He further argued that the disorderly retreat signaled vulnerability, setting a precedent that ultimately encouraged Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
This line of reasoning echoes previous statements by President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly asserted that the Afghanistan withdrawal projected weakness that emboldened Vladimir Putin. Hegseth said, “If the Afghanistan disaster hadn’t happened, the Ukraine war likely wouldn’t have either.”
Hegseth confirmed that the Department of Defense will continue a full investigation into the withdrawal’s failures through 2026, aiming to hold decision-makers accountable. He emphasized that America’s global image suffered due to the withdrawal, especially among NATO allies and adversaries like China and Russia.
However, many analysts and critics argue that blaming the Afghanistan withdrawal for the Ukraine war oversimplifies the issue. Experts from institutions like the Council on Foreign Relations note that long-standing tensions between NATO and Russia, energy politics, and internal Russian dynamics played a far more direct role in Putin’s aggression.
Despite political rhetoric, a broader view suggests the Ukraine conflict had multiple geopolitical drivers. While the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan remains a contentious and painful chapter, attributing global conflicts solely to it lacks nuance.
As the Pentagon’s internal review continues, policymakers and scholars alike stress the need to learn from past military exits while recognizing the complexity of international security decisions.
US Defense Secretary slams 2021 Afghanistan withdrawal as ‘Tragic Disaster’
Police have discovered a huge quantity of arms and ammunition in Afghanistan’s Helmand province over the past three months, with 58 people arrested, Provincial director for counter-criminal activities Mawlawi Abdul Satar Amin said on Sunday.
Kabul: Police have discovered a huge quantity of arms and ammunition in Afghanistan’s Helmand province over the past three months, with 58 people arrested, Provincial director for counter-criminal activities Mawlawi Abdul Satar Amin said on Sunday. The weaponry, which included 45 pieces of pistols, seven pieces of Kalashnikovs, nine pieces of other types of assault rifles, hundreds of projectiles and other military equipment, was discovered during operations in the provincial capital Lashkar Gah and several districts over the past three months, the official said.
All the collected arms and ammunition were handed over to the concerned authorities recently, the official asserted. Police have also taken into custody 58 individuals on charges of involvement in criminal activities such as theft, armed robbery, and murder, the official said, adding police won’t allow anyone to create law and order problems in the province, Xinhua news agency reported.
In similar operations, police also reported the discovery of arms and ammunition, including 13 pieces of AK-47 and six rocket launchers, in Helmand’s neighbouring Kandahar province on Saturday. On July 5, the counter-terrorism police discovered a similar case, including more than 100 pieces of firearms, during a series of operations in the same province over the past two months, said a statement of the Ministry for Interior Affairs.
The 105 pieces of variety of assault rifles including 14 stocks of Kalashnikovs, 63 pieces of pistols, a rocket propelled grenade, some machineguns and more than 3,000 of bullets of light and heavy weapons have been recovered during operations in different parts of the province, the statement posted on the Ministry’s X account added. Police have also taken into custody a number of people for carrying arms illegally and handed them over to the judiciary for further investigation, the statement noted, without revealing the exact number of individuals detained back then. In similar operations, police also discovered and seized six AK-47 assault rifles in the northern Sari Pul province the week before.
Huge weaponry discovered, 58 detained in Afghanistan
The United Nations says aid workers are still in a “race against time” to remove rubble and rebuild after the devastating earthquake struck eastern Afghanistan last month, killing at least 2,200 people and cutting off remote areas.
The 6.0-magnitude quake on Aug. 31 was shallow, destroying or causing extensive damage to low-rise buildings in the mountainous region. It hit late at night, and homes — mostly made of mud, wood, or rocks — collapsed instantly, becoming death traps.
Satellite data shows that about 40,500 truckloads of debris still needs to be cleared from affected areas in several provinces, the United Nations Development Program said Wednesday. Entire communities have been upended and families are sleeping in the open, it added.
The quake’s epicenter was in remote and rugged Kunar province, challenging rescue and relief efforts by the Taliban government and humanitarian groups. Authorities deployed helicopters or airdropped army commandos to evacuate survivors. Aid workers walked for hours on foot to reach isolated communities.
“This is a race against time,” said Devanand Ramiah, from the UNDP’s Crisis Bureau. “Debris removal and reconstruction operations must start safely and swiftly.”
People’s main demands were the reconstruction of houses and water supplies, according to a spokesman for a Taliban government committee tasked with helping survivors, Zia ur Rahman Speenghar.
People were getting assistance in cash, food, tents, beds, and other necessities, Speenghar said Thursday. Three new roads were under construction in the Dewagal Valley, and roads would be built to areas where there previously were none.
“Various countries and organizations have offered assistance in the construction of houses but that takes time. After the second round of assistance, work will begin on the third round, which is considering what kind of houses can be built here,” the spokesman said.
Afghanistan is facing a “perfect storm” of crises, including natural disasters like the recent earthquake, said Roza Otunbayeva, who leads the U.N. mission to the country.
Afghanistan Peace Campaign
