Overview

• Pakistani authorities raided GIZ-run shelters in Islamabad last week, detaining and deporting dozens of Afghan refugees with German admission visas back to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan.
• Germany suspended its Bundesaufnahme scheme in July 2024, leaving roughly 2,400 visa-holders stuck in Pakistan and Iran without pathways to relocation.
• At least 25 refugee families have sued the Foreign Ministry, citing court-issued Aufnahmebescheide to demand issuance of visas stalled by the intake freeze.
• The Foreign Office has voiced “great concern” over the forced returns but has not outlined measures to secure the return of deported visa-holders.
• Afghan women’s groups organized rallies in Hamburg and Munich on the fourth anniversary of Kabul’s fall, urging Berlin to honor resettlement commitments and avoid legitimizing the Taliban.