Berlin, August 30, 2026
Taliban staff are preparing deportations to Afghanistan from Germany, according to a media report, even though the German federal government does not recognize the government in Kabul.
According to NDR research, Taliban representatives are said to have traveled to Germany to prepare the deportation of Afghan citizens. The operation is part of a diplomatic mission aimed at consolidating the Taliban government's return to power on the international stage, according to the report. The German federal government has so far not recognized the government in Kabul.
Cooperation with the Taliban on returns is subject to humanitarian and security policy reviews, according to the German federal government. According to this, only offenders and individuals posing a specific security risk would be deported, not the broad mass of Afghan asylum seekers. A prerequisite is that the Taliban grant representatives of the German federal government and humanitarian organizations access to those affected.
The German federal government justifies its approach with the necessity of orderly returns. At the same time, it points out that the situation in Afghanistan, particularly for women and girls, remains critical. The question of how deportations can be carried out responsibly under these conditions is politically controversial.
Criticism from the ranks of the Greens
Critics, for example from the ranks of the Greens, have repeatedly complained that the German federal government is making practical concessions to enable deportations despite not recognizing the Taliban government, including because of its human rights violations - particularly with regard to women.
Greens politician Filiz Polat, who is responsible for domestic policy in the Bundestag faction, warned in conversation with NDR that cooperation with the Taliban must not lead to an upgrading of the regime. She demanded that deportations must be designed transparently and subject to parliamentary oversight.
Human rights organizations have also expressed concerns. They point to reports of arbitrary arrests, torture, and the systematic oppression of women by the Taliban. Deportation to a country where these rights are massively violated raises questions under international law.
Concerns from human rights organizations
According to the Federal Ministry of the Interior, talks are currently underway with Vienna on possible collective deportations via Austrian territory. The Austrian government had recently also prepared deportations to Afghanistan and adopted a more moderate tone toward the Taliban for that purpose.
The city of Bonn, which has a particular profile as a hub for the Afghan diaspora and civil society initiatives, is meanwhile calling for greater say in decisions on deportations. Katja Dörner spoke out in favor of stronger involvement of the municipalities.
Opposition politicians from the Union are calling for a clear line from the German federal government. Anyone negotiating with the Taliban must disclose what conditions have been agreed, said the domestic policy spokesperson of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group. The faction announced that it would question the Federal Minister of the Interior in the Bundestag's Interior Committee.
Open questions and demands
The German federal government emphasizes that it has no interest in normalizing relations with the Taliban. Cooperation is limited to the narrowly defined area of returning Afghans who are required to leave the country and have been convicted of serious crimes or pose a concrete threat to security.
It remains unclear how many Taliban staff are currently in Germany and what specific tasks they are performing. The German federal government points to the confidentiality of ongoing negotiations. Critics are calling for a public debate on the long-term consequences of such cooperation.
The reports about a Taliban mission in Germany raise fundamental questions: How can non-recognition be reconciled with practical cooperation? What guarantees are there for deported Afghans, especially for women and girls? And what signals does the Federal Republic of Germany thereby send to other states negotiating with the Taliban?