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Politics

Germany returns 23 Afghans to Kabul

Germany has deported 23 Afghan nationals on a charter flight to Kabul. The country's Interior Ministry said most of them had been convicted of serious crimes, including sexual violence and assault. The number of people deported to Afghanistan under the current German government has reached 228.

**Germany returns 23 Afghans to Kabul**

The German Interior Ministry announced on August 25 that it deported 23 Afghan men on a special charter flight from Leipzig/Halle airport to the Afghan capital, Kabul. The men were to be deported from Germany.

The ministry said that most of those deported had been convicted of serious crimes, including sexual violence and assault. A German Interior Ministry spokesman told AFP that the remaining men had also previously been brought to the attention of law enforcement agencies. The ministry said the deportation process had been completed successfully.

The August 25 flight brings the total number of men deported to Afghanistan under the current German government to 228.

German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt stressed that those who do not have the right to stay in the country must leave Germany. He said that it is in the public interest to deport people who have committed crimes and that the government will continue to pursue this policy consistently.

A day before the flight to Kabul, a demonstration against the deportation of Afghan citizens took place at Leipzig/Halle Airport. Anti-deportation activists said that people being returned to Afghanistan could face persecution, torture or other serious risks under Taliban rule. Kai Adil, a representative of the Alliance Against Deportations, noted that returning Afghans seeking protection in Germany to a country ruled by the Taliban could pose a threat to their lives and safety.

Germany stopped deporting citizens of that country after the Taliban took power in Afghanistan in the summer of 2021. Deportations to Afghanistan resumed in August 2024. At that time, 28 Afghan citizens convicted of crimes were sent from Germany to Kabul.

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