"Necessary path"

First deportation to Afghanistan in four years

For the first time in more than four years, a convicted Afghan offender was deported to his home country.(Bild: BMI/Bundesministerium für Inneres (Archivbild))

A criminal convicted of rape was transferred to his home country of Kabul early Tuesday morning. It is the first deportation from Austria to Afghanistan since the radical Islamic Taliban regained power there in 2021.

The repatriation took place early on Tuesday morning and, according to the Ministry of the Interior, was closely coordinated between the Federal Office for Immigration and Asylum (BFA) and the Afghan authorities.

Sexual offense and assault 
The deportee is a man born in 1994 who had spent almost four years in detention in Austria. He had been convicted of rape and grievous bodily harm, among other things.

At the beginning of the year, representatives of the Federal Office for Immigration and Asylum had already held talks with the local administration in Afghanistan at an operational and technical level. In September, representatives of the Afghan authorities were in Vienna to coordinate the practical implementation of deportations.

It then became known that 30 people could be deported to Afghanistan. According to the Ministry of the Interior, further deportations to Afghanistan are in preparation. 

Gerhard Karner, Federal Minister of the Interior (l.) and Federal Chancellor Christian Stocker pledge "zero tolerance" and "protection for all people in Austria".(Bild: AP/Heinz-Peter Bader)

"We protect people in Austria, not foreign criminals"
"Anyone who does not abide by our rules must leave. Zero tolerance towards people who have forfeited their right of residence by committing crimes. These criminals must leave our country - no matter where they come from. Today's deportation to Afghanistan is a clear signal: we are protecting the people in Austria, not foreign criminals who have no right to live here," said Federal Chancellor Christian Stocker.

Today's deportation to Afghanistan is a clear signal: we are protecting the people of Austria, not foreign criminals who have no right to live here.

Bundeskanzler Christian Stocker

"Deportations consistently implemented"
 Interior Minister Gerhard Karner: "We have announced deportations of convicted criminals to Afghanistan and now we are implementing these deportations. This hard and necessary path will be consistently continued. Further deportations of convicted criminals to Afghanistan are being prepared and will then be carried out."