"Deportations to Iran are irresponsible in the current disastrous human rights situation in Iran," the German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser has told the news magazine Der Spiegel.

"A halt to expulsions is the right step, which should be decided as soon as possible by the states," Faeser said. Under Germany’s federalist system, the states are responsible for deportations and each state independently decides who to deport. 

Faeser said the Islamic republic "is cracking down on peaceful protest with brutal violence," even as young women "rebel with unbelievable courage against rule by violence and oppression."

"We must do everything we can here in Germany for the protection of the courageous Iranian civil society," she added.

Proposal for nationwide moratorium

The minister was speaking after Lower Saxony, one of Germany's 16 federal states, announced it would stop deportations to Iran. The region's interior minister, Boris Pistorius, said he would advocate a nationwide moratorium at the next meeting of his state counterparts.

Pro Asyl, a European refugee rights and advocacy group, and the state refugee councils also called on the states to follow the example of Lower Saxony.

"Politicians have to ensure that no one is handed over to this regime through deportation," said Nazanin Ghafouri, from the Bremen Refugee Council.

31 people expelled to Iran this year

Germany deports relatively few people to Iran, according to figures from the interior ministry. As of the end of August, it had expelled 31 people since the start of the year. Last year the total number of expulsions was 28. This is a tiny fraction of the number of Iranians who have no legal right of residence in Germany and are required to leave – these number around 11,590, according to a report in Der Spiegel.

Also read: Germany deports mother and daughter to Iran after more than a decade

Demonstrations in Iran

The trigger for the demonstrations in Iran was the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini on September 16, days after the notorious morality police detained the Kurdish Iranian for allegedly breaching rules requiring women to wear hijab headscarves and modest clothes.

Critics have accused the morality police of using violence, a claim denied by police.

Since Amini’s death, demonstrations have continued against the repressive rule of the government of the Islamic Republic and against compulsory hijabs. Human rights groups say dozens of lives have been lost in the protests and thousands of people have been arrested.

The European Union said earlier this week that it was considering tougher sanctions against Tehran over the brutal clampdown. On Thursday, the United States also imposed new sanctions against Iranian officials.

Also read: Calls mount to ease asylum for Iranians, as clampdown on protestors claims more lives

With AFP, dpa, EPD