Amnesty International urges the European Union (EU) institutions and member states to abandon Afghanistan deportation plans and end any readmission cooperation with Taliban de facto authorities.
Afghanistan cannot in any way be considered safe for returns, and this approach will put the lives of returnees at risk, as repeatedly noted by several UN bodies.
The European Commission recently invited Taliban authorities to Brussels to discuss the deportation of Afghan nationals. This meeting, which is expected to take place imminently according to media reports, follows a push by several member states to accelerate deportations to Afghanistan, despite the dire human rights situation and amid a deepening humanitarian crisis in the country, with severe food insecurity and almost 22 million people in need of assistance. The EU is well aware of this, has repeatedly denounced the Taliban’s horrific abuses, and played a key role in efforts towards accountability, including the establishment of an independent investigative mechanism on Afghanistan at the UN Human Rights Council last October.
Any EU engagement on deportations to Afghanistan is reckless, dangerous and ignores the EU’s own legal obligations
