Rights groups in Germany have filed criminal complaints against two senior government ministers after dozens of Afghans accepted under a German resettlement scheme were deported from Pakistan while waiting for visas.
Pro Asyl, a refugee advocacy organisation, said Pakistan arrested hundreds of Afghans this week and deported 34 people, placing them at risk of imprisonment, mistreatment or even execution under Taliban rule. The group, together with a second organisation, lodged charges against Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul and Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt, accusing them of abandonment and failure to assist vulnerable refugees.
The complaints concern a programme launched in 2021 under former chancellor Olaf Scholz, which pledged to bring thousands of at-risk Afghans to Germany, including journalists, rights activists and those who had worked with German institutions. But the initiative has been frozen since May, when conservative Chancellor Friedrich Merz took office promising tighter immigration controls.
The suspension has left an estimated 2,000 Afghans stranded in Pakistan, unable to travel despite receiving German approval. The aid group Kabul Airbridge warned that another 270 Afghans faced imminent deportation on Friday.
Marking the fourth anniversary of the Taliban’s return to power, Wadephul expressed “deep concern” and said Berlin was pressing Pakistan “at the highest level” to protect those affected. However, the government has not reinstated the admissions programme, despite a court ruling last month that Berlin has a legally binding duty to issue visas.
Immigration remains a polarising issue in Germany, fuelled by a series of violent attacks involving foreign nationals ahead of February’s elections. Merz has vowed to end the Afghan admissions scheme and increase deportations of convicted criminals to Afghanistan.
Pakistan, which hosts millions of Afghans, has escalated expulsions since April by revoking residence permits. Over one million Afghans have left Pakistan since 2023, including more than 200,000 in recent months.
Written By Rodney Mbua
