Deportation debate
Taliban hope for direct cooperation with Germany
For the first time since the Taliban seized power three years ago, a deportation flight left Germany for Afghanistan. (Archive photo) Photo
© Michael Kappeler/dpa
For the first time in three years, a deportation flight to Afghanistan took place. But what happened to the criminals? Now an official of the Islamist group has spoken out.
Last Friday, for the first time since the Taliban seized power three years ago, a deportation flight took off from Germany to Afghanistan, on a plane operated by the Qatari airline Qatar Airways. The 28 deportees were convicted criminals who had no right to remain in Germany and who had appealed against the deportation orders. Union politicians called for more deportation flights.
The representative did not initially confirm reports that the offenders had been placed in a notorious prison. “As for the detainees, they will be investigated and dealt with in accordance with the law, taking into account the crimes they have committed and their previous convictions,” he simply stated.
According to the news channel Al Jazeera, the Gulf emirate of Qatar mediated between the German government and the Taliban rulers for the deportation. Germany has no diplomatic relations with the Taliban in Kabul. So far, no country in the world has officially recognized the Islamist government. The group is internationally isolated, particularly because of its disregard for human rights and, above all, women’s rights.