VIENNA — Austria has deported a convicted Afghan national to Kabul; its second such expulsion since the Taliban seized power in 2021; deepening a national debate over how far Europe should go in enforcing deportations to war torn or repressive states, according to Kronen Zeitung.
The man, born in 1992, was flown out early Sunday morning via Istanbul, the Interior Ministry confirmed. He had been convicted in Vienna for attempting to sell narcotics and sentenced in March. Officials said the deportation was carried out in coordination with Taliban authorities.
The move follows Austria’s first deportation to Afghanistan in late October, involving a 29 year old man convicted of rape and serious bodily harm after serving a four year prison term. Both operations, according to the ministry, were organized jointly by the Federal Office for Immigration and Asylum (BFA) and Afghan officials in Kabul.
Austria’s conservative government has tightened its deportation policy in recent months. For the first time in more than two decades, a Somali national was expelled, and several Syrians have also been returned to their countries of origin. Interior Minister Gerhard Karner said additional measures are being prepared “for Afghanistan and Syria alike.”
The deportations have provoked sharp criticism from rights groups and opposition lawmakers, who argue that returning people to Taliban-ruled Afghanistan violates humanitarian and international protection standards.
Despite the government’s hard line, Austria continues to approve thousands of asylum applications from Afghan nationals. In the first nine months of the year, nearly 4,000 Afghans received asylum, a 76 percent approval rate with many women gaining full refugee status under European law.
Chancellor Christian Stocker defended the government’s stance: “We protect the people of Austria, not foreign criminals,” he said after the first deportation. “We are following through and more will follow.”
