Afghan Refugees Protest Berlin-Kabul Deportation Deal
BERLIN (Tasnim) – Thousands of Afghan people on Saturday took to the streets of the German cities of Hamburg and Stuttgart, protesting a recent deal between Germany and Afghanistan which grants Berlin authority to deport Afghan refugees.
According to Tasnim dispatches, the rallies began from Hamburg's central train station, where the protesters held placards which read, “Afghanistan is not a safe country” and “You are wrong Mister De Maiziere,” referring to German Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere.
Stuttgart was also the scene of similar protests against the deal.
The demonstrations came after Berlin and Kabul earlier this month signed a deal whereby Berlin can mass deport those refugees who fail to gain asylum in the European country.
After the deal was announced, de Maiziere claimed that it would facilitate the acceptance of Afghan asylum-seekers into the country.
Since the beginning of the refugee crisis in Europe, Germany has accepted over 900,000 Afghan refugees. Meanwhile, anti-refugee sentiment has been growing in the country, with the country’s right-wing anti-refugee political party, Alternative for Germany (AfD), making major gains in several states.
