Germany accused over 'illegal' deportation of Afghan asylum seeker, thegaurdian

The German government has been accused of breaking its own rules on removing Afghan asylum seekers with a decision to deport a 26-year-old who fears he will be killed if returned.

The man, who the Guardian is not naming, is due to be flown out of Germany on Wednesday to a country he has not set foot in since he was five years old. 

The case has focused attention on Germany’s acceleration of deportations, which have doubled over the past year. In all, 78 people are due to be deported on Wednesday.

Amnesty has accused Germany and other European countries of breaking international law by returning asylum seekers to Afghanistan at a time when civilian casualties in the country are at their highest for years. 

The deportation is part of a controversial policy in which male Afghan asylum seekers can be returned if they have been convicted of crimes or are considered to be “dangerous” suspects. They can also be sent back if they refuse to cooperate with immigration authorities to clarify their identities.

However, lawyers defending the man say that he does not fall into any of these categories. “He is not a criminal, is not being observed as a potential terrorist and has cooperated in giving his identification papers,” said Philipp Pruy, an immigration lawyer from BC Legal Lawyers who is handling the case. “He is unfairly and callously being sent back but he has not committed a crime and he has cooperated in making sure the government can identify who he is.

“They only told him one week ago that he would be deported. He fears his life could be in danger.”

The man, whose asylum application has been rejected and who has lived in Bayreuth, Bavaria, since 2011, told the Guardian that he was stressed at the prospect of leaving and returning to a country he had not been to since the age of five.  

Pruy says he hopes to stop the deportation before Wednesday and is appealing against the decision as an emergency case. “In my opinion, it is illegal because it is against what the federal government told us in August this year, that people would only be deported in exceptional circumstances.”- Read More

Germany accused over 'illegal' deportation of Afghan asylum seeker ...