Austria Deports Afghan National To Afghanistan After Identity Verification

Austria's Interior Ministry said the Afghan national was deported via Istanbul after serving prison sentences for serious property crimes and drug-related offenses. Officials said he had spent more than two and a half years in prison and had 20 criminal police records in Austria.

The ministry said Austria and Germany are among the first European countries to have resumed direct deportations to Afghanistan and Syria after suspending removals following the Taliban's return to power in 2021. Austrian authorities said additional deportations of convicted offenders are being prepared.

The announcement comes as Austria has intensified immigration enforcement. The Interior Ministry said it deported more than 8,800 people who were residing in the country illegally during the first seven months of the year.

Austria has increasingly coordinated with Taliban authorities on deportation procedures, including technical cooperation to verify identities and obtain travel documents for Afghan nationals facing removal. While Vienna says the cooperation is limited to deportation logistics, rights groups argue it amounts to de facto engagement with Taliban authorities.

Austria carried out its first deportation to Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover in late 2025 and has continued individual removals during 2026, despite maintaining that it does not formally recognize the Taliban government.

The policy mirrors a broader shift in parts of Europe. Germany has also resumed deportations of Afghan nationals, expanding removals beyond convicted criminals in recent months, while several European governments are pressing for stronger cooperation on returning Afghans whose asylum claims have been rejected.

MENAFN02092026000228011069ID1111611577