US media: Germany expels Afghan refugees to accommodate Ukrainians

A new report released by US media says Germany is evicting hundreds of Afghans to make way for a large flood of Ukrainian war refugees who are arriving in the country.

US-based Foreign Policy magazine recounted the story of helpless Afghan families who arrived in Germany as refugees but were quite recently expelled by the German government to make room for incoming Ukrainian refugees.

Even German social workers voiced frustration at Berlin’s treatment of Afghan refugees, it said.

The German government grants asylum seekers temporary residence that is re-evaluated every six months. But it often does not approve extension and eventual asylum, depending on the situation in their home country.

“This means that soon after their arrival, Afghans fell into the same category—and are treated—as asylum-seekers who have been granted asylum and who have already been living in Germany for years, able to speak the language and to navigate the system,” said an unnamed social worker.

These Afghans are now being displaced by the German government to make room for a large flood of Ukrainian war refugees who are arriving in Germany.

According to the report, the eviction decision was made by Berlin’s Senate Department for Integration, Labor, and Social Services. The department argues that the move is “based on operationally necessary and difficult considerations” and that there is no alternative because Ukrainians, including many women with children, needed a roof over their heads and a bed.

Before the commencement of Russia’s military operation in Ukraine on February 24, Germany was Europe’s biggest host country for refugees with more than 1.24 million people living in it, after Berlin opened its borders in 2015 to people mostly fleeing war in Syria.

After the war in Ukraine, Poland became the biggest host country for refugees in Europe which has taken in 2.8 million Ukrainians so far.  

MG