Germany halts Afghan refugee admission flights pending new government decision
BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's outgoing government has suspended flights for voluntary admissions of Afghan refugees for two weeks pending a decision by the next government on how to proceed, the foreign ministry said on Wednesday.
Earlier this month, the future governing coalition of conservatives and Social Democrats (SPD) agreed to curb irregular migration, reflecting a mounting public backlash after several violent attacks by migrants as well as increasing pressure on housing and other infrastructure.
After the Western allies' hasty withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, Germany felt a strong obligation to protect former local staff of German agencies and humanitarian organisations there, and established several programmes to resettle them along with particularly vulnerable Afghans.
According to the Federal Foreign Office, a total of 36,000 people have entered Germany under such voluntary programmes, including a good 20,000 who were local staff and their families.
Around 2,600 people approved for admission by Germany's Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) are currently waiting in Pakistan for a German visa and charter flights, 350 of whom are former local employees, the foreign office added.
In addition to receiving admission approval, applicants must complete a visa process and security screening involving the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, the Federal Police, and the Federal Criminal Police Office.
The current Greens-led foreign ministry said that existing admission confirmations were legally binding and could only be revoked under specific conditions. This meant it could be difficult for the new government to cancel them regardless of who takes over the interior or foreign ministries.
Germany's outgoing government arranged several resettlement flights in recent weeks, drawing criticism from conservative politicians who argued that the SPD-Greens coalition was rushing to admit new arrivals before it hands over.
"For several weeks now, we've been seeing planes arrive in Germany on a daily basis. I believe that's wrong. It creates the impression that an outgoing federal government is trying to establish facts on the ground in its final days," Thorsten Frei, a parliamentary leader of the conservative bloc, said.
ProAsyl, a German NGO providing legal help to asylum seekers, warned that halting the final rescue flights would leave vulnerable Afghans at risk of torture or death if returned to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan.
"The German government itself has determined their endangerment ... A return or deportation to Afghanistan could mean torture or even death for them," said Wiebke Judith, ProAsyl legal policy spokesperson.
(Reporting by Riham Alkousaa, Markus Wacket and Miranda Murray; editing by Mark Heinrich)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Turkey detains prominent journalist for allegedly threatening Erdogan
ANKARA (Reuters) -Turkish authorities detained prominent independent journalist Fatih Altayli on Saturday over social media comments allegedly threatening President Tayyip Erdogan, the Istanbul prosecutor's office said. Altayli, who has more than 1.51 million subscribers on his YouTube channel, posted a video on Friday referencing an unnamed poll showing 70% of Turks opposed Erdogan ruling for life, saying this would "never be allowed" by the Turkish people. Altayli also referenced past Ottoman rulers in his comments, saying people had "drowned", "killed", or "assassinated them in the past." His comments drew backlash from an Erdogan aide, Oktay Saral, who said on X that Altayli's "water was boiling". In a statement, the Istanbul prosecutor's office said the comments from Altayli "contained threats" against Erdogan, and said an investigation has been launched against him. Legal representation for Altayli could not immediately be reached for comment. Altayli's detention comes amid a series of detentions of opposition figures in recent months, including the arrest in March of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu who is Erdogan's main political rival. The main opposition CHP says the detentions and arrests of its members, along with other opposition members and journalists or media personalities, is a politicised move by the government to muzzle dissent and eliminate electoral challenges to Erdogan. The government denies these claims, saying the judiciary and Turkey's courts are independent. Turkish authorities have in the past carried out widespread detentions and arrests against opposition politicians, namely pro-Kurdish local authorities. More than 150 people jailed so far over what Erdogan's government says is a ring of corruption that the CHP denies. (Reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu; editing by Diane Craft)
New Straits Times
8 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Putin T-shirts, robots and Taliban, but few Westerners at Russian economic forum
RUSSIA'S flagship economic forum kicked off on Wednesday with stalls selling Vladimir Putin-themed merchandise and humanoid robots, but Westerners were few and far between — despite warming ties between Moscow and Washington under Donald Trump. Once dubbed "Russia's Davos", the annual Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) is designed to attract foreign investment and is the biggest showcase of Russian technology and business. Some 20,000 guests from 140 countries took part in the four-day forum, both online and in person, according to the Kremlin. But for the fourth year running high-profile European and American representatives were absent amid Moscow's offensive on Ukraine, a stark contrast to before the conflict, when some Western leaders would attend. Among the states that sent high-level government figures this year were China, Vietnam, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, the Central African Republic and Burkina Faso. Taliban officials were also spotted at the expo, amid Russia's push to normalise ties with the Islamist group. Russian officials said some Western executives attended it. A panel on Thursday, titled simply "Russia-USA", featured the head of the American Chamber of Commerce in Russia, some private investors, the founder of a microphone manufacturer and head of a crypto project. But in one high-profile win for Putin, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto skipped an invitation to the G7 in Canada, choosing instead to meet Putin and attend SPIEF. Among the events on the first day of the forum were panels focused on artificial intelligence and investment in the Global South. Russia has channelled its economic interests away from the West and towards emerging markets in Asia and Africa due to sanctions over the Ukraine conflict. One stand handed out T-shirts featuring quotes from Vladimir Putin and other government officials. Technology was also on display. A humanoid robot flaunting a Dior handbag was seen walking around the exhibits. The forum came amid intense speculation in Russia about the prospect of sanctions relief and the return of Western firms that left the country after Moscow launched its offensive on Ukraine in February 2022. Hundreds of companies sold off, abandoned or gave away their Russian operations, ranging from McDonald's and Nike to Ford and Goldman Sachs. Putin has at times blasted them for departing, warned they would not be allowed to return and said Russia is better off without them. He has also introduced punitive counter-sanctions, restricting the ability of firms from so-called "unfriendly" countries from accessing their profits and imposing huge exit fees and taxes on any wishing to leave. Trump's return to the White House and opening of diplomacy with Russia led to a frenzy of headlines in Russian media about whether he would ease US sanctions. Russia's top economic negotiator, Kirill Dmitriev, said on Wednesday that the United States may "in the next couple of months" announce joint projects with Russia in the Arctic, without elaborating. Once a fixture of Europe's business calendar, SPIEF was where Western leaders, CEOs and major investors gathered to seal deals on entering and expanding their footprint in Russia. Then-German chancellor Angela Merkel attended in 2013, as did Mark Rutte, the Dutch prime minister and now the secretary general of Nato — the man marshalling the military alliance's response to Putin's Ukraine offensive. Its prestige started to dip after 2014, when Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine and was hit with the first tranche of Western sanctions. But even as recently as 2018, French President Emmanuel Macron and Japan's then-prime minister Shinzo Abe sat on stage alongside Putin.
The Star
8 hours ago
- The Star
UPDATE -- Thai PM will not resign or dissolve parliament, ruling party official says
Activists have scheduled a protest in Bangkok on June 28 to ask for Paetongtarn Shinawatra's resignation. -- PHOTO: REUTERS BANGKOK (Reuters): Thailand's embattled prime minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra will not resign or dissolve parliament, a senior official from the ruling Pheu Thai party said on Saturday, risking a prolonged political crisis in South-Est Asia's second largest economy. Sorawong Thienthong, who also serves as Thailand's tourism minister, said in a Facebook post that the prime minister would not quit, despite growing calls for her resignation after her apparent mishandling of a border dispute with neighbouring Cambodia. "The prime minister has clearly confirmed to us that she will continue to perform her duty to resolve various crises that the country is facing to the best of her ability," he said. "The government confirms that it will continue to work, not resign, and not dissolve parliament." Paetongtarn, daughter of divisive tycoon and former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, is facing domestic anger over the leak of a phone call between her and Cambodia's influential former leader Hun Sen, in which she appeared to kowtow before the veteran politician and denigrated a senior Thai military commander. The Bhumjaithai Party, which was the second-biggest partner in Thailand's ruling coalition, withdrew from the alliance late on Wednesday, citing the leak earlier that day. Another coalition member, the United Thai Nation party, looked set to demand Paetongtarn's resignation in return for backing the Pheu Thai-led ruling coalition and securing its narrow parliamentary majority. Paetongtarn has apologised for the call with Hun Sen, but not commented on the crisis so far. Activists have also scheduled a protest in Bangkok starting on June 28 to ask for Paetongtarn's resignation, among them groups with a history of influential rallies against Shinawatra administrations. (Reporting by Panarat Thepgumpanat and Orathai Sriring; Writing by Devjyot Ghoshal; Editing by Tomasz Janowski and Mark Potter) - Reuters
