The German government announced on Friday that it had returned to deport Afghan criminals to their countrys, a measure that has not been applied since August 2021 and which affects “convicted criminals who did not have the right to remain in Germany and against whom deportation orders had been issued”.
The announcement, made public by Steffen Hebestereit, spokesman for the government of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, comes barely a week after the attack that three dead in the city of Solingen (west) and after which the Executive presented new measures for tighten immigration and security policy.
“This morning, Germany returned Afghan nationals to their home country for the first time since August 2021,” Hebestreit said in a statement in which the Scholz government reiterated its “commitment” to carry out repatriations like those announced this Friday.
“Germany’s security interests clearly outweigh the interest in protecting criminals and dangerous people,” he said in a statement from the German government’s spokesman, who presented the day before a set of measures by which Berlin intends to strengthen its immigration policy and security.
This package was the Scholz government’s reaction to the Knife attack leaves three dead last week in Solingen, perpetrated by a Syrian citizen who should have been expelled before and who had pledged allegiance to the jihadist group Islamic State (IS).
Hebestreit said, referring to Afghan immigrants in his statement those who risk convictions and deportation orders, that “in recent months, the federal government has made great efforts to resume returns in these cases and has supported the responsible states in this regard.”
“Germany has requested the support of key regional partners to facilitate the repatriation. The federal government is very grateful for this support,” the spokesperson stressed in his statement.
