Germany deports Afghan without criminal record for first time since Taliban takeover


FILE PHOTO: Elham, 29, embraces his mother and sister as he welcomes them at Hannover Airport as a group of Afghan nationals arrive in Germany from Pakistan, after legal and diplomatic pressure pushed Germany to resume a scheme that allows the entry of vulnerable Afghans, in Hannover, Germany, September 1, 2025. REUTERS/Christian Mang/File Photo

BERLIN, July 28 (Reuters) - ⁠Germany has deported an Afghan ⁠national without a criminal record for ‌the first time since the Taliban returned to power, Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said on Tuesday.

• ​According to Dobrindt, the ⁠man had become ⁠liable for deportation after exhausting his asylum claim.

• ⁠He ‌had attempted to settle in another European country but ⁠was found to be living there illegally. ​After ‌being transferred back to Germany, he was ⁠deported ​to Afghanistan.

• The man was among 31 Afghan men deported by plane on ⁠Tuesday. The other 30 had ​criminal convictions.

• Deportations to Afghanistan following the Taliban's takeover in 2021 remain controversial, given ⁠concerns over human rights and the treatment of returnees.

• Since the resumption of deportations to Afghanistan in 2024, Germany ​has returned over 200 ⁠people. According to human rights group Amnesty ​International, at least one ‌was killed following deportation.

(Reporting ​by Markus Wacket, writing by Miranda Murray, editing by Thomas Seythal)

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