Germany has deported a group of Afghans to their home country under a law that allows for criminal foreigners to be sent back to their country of origin. Over the past year, Germany has applied this law to more than 250 Afghans, as the government continues to focus on increasing the deportation of criminal individuals.
The German government has sent 13 Afghan nationals back to their country following their convictions for various criminal offenses, including sexual offenses, assault, and drug trafficking.
A spokeswoman for the Federal Ministry of the Interior stressed that "[w]ithout exception, these men are all individuals who have been involved in criminal activity here."
According to the information provided, the repatriation took place via a charter flight to the Afghan capital Kabul on September 15.
Under German law, foreign nationals seeking international protection can be returned to their home country if they commit crimes resulting in a minimum one-year prison sentence.
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More deportations to Taliban-led Afghanistan
Earlier in September, another group of 22 men with severe criminal records had already been deported from Germany to Afghanistan. In that instance, the list of offenses included murder, arson and extortion, according to the Federal Ministry of the Interior.
The ministry announced in June that it was going to speed up and expand the deportation of Afghan criminals with up to three charter flights per month.
The current German government under Chancellor Friedrich Merz has repeatedly expressed plans to increase deportations to Afghanistan — by working more closely with the Afghan government, which is run by the extremist Taliban group.
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German cooperation with Taliban diplomats
Although Germany does not recognize the legitimacy of the Islamist administration of the country, it has managed to sign a number of agreements to facilitate returns of criminal Afghans.
As part of the agreement, Germany has agreed to accept a handful of diplomatic personnel sent to Germany by Kabul, who are tasked with assisting the German government with producing the paperwork needed to conduct successful deportations.
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Since the current government took over in May 2025, Germany has deported a total of 263 Afghan nationals to Afghanistan.
Almost all of them were criminals, according to German officials. However in July, an Afghan man without a criminal record was also among those sent back to Afghanistan after his asylum claim had been rejected.
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Rights groups voice criticism about government course
However, various rights groups, including the German migrants' rights group Pro Asyl, have repeatedly criticized Germany's perceived rapprochement with Afghanistan's Taliban leaders, saying that any cooperation would lend legitimacy to the group.
Rights groups have also expressed concern about criminal Afghans being deported back to their country, since in many cases, their fate upon their return remains unknown.
As a country practising a particularly strict form of Sharia Law, including the use of the death penalty, critics fear what conditions the deportees might face.
Earlier this year, the UNHCR also joined the list of organizations opposing deportations to Afghanistan on the basis of human rights violations perpetuated in the Central Asian nation.
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with dpa, AFP