For the first time since the start of the Syrian civil war in 2011, the German government has deported a convicted criminal back to Syria. The man was handed over to the authorities in the Syrian capital Damascus on Tuesday morning, according to a statement from the Federal Ministry of the Interior in Berlin. The statement said that an agreement had been reached with the Syrian government “that deportations of criminals and dangerous individuals can take place on a regular basis in future.”
In Syria, the Islamist HTS militia overthrew long-time ruler Bashar al-Assad in December 2024. The German government has been in talks with Damascus for several months about resuming deportations. Aid organizations and parts of the opposition criticized this, pointing to the continuing precarious situation in Syria.
According to the Federal Ministry of the Interior, the man deported to Syria had served a prison sentence in North Rhine-Westphalia for aggravated robbery, bodily harm, and extortion. According to the Bild newspaper, he was taken to Damascus on a scheduled flight by federal police officers.
On Tuesday morning, another criminal was deported to Afghanistan, the Interior Ministry added. He had been imprisoned in Bavaria for, among other things, intentional bodily harm. In July, a deportation flight from Germany to Afghanistan took off for the first time in almost a year.
“Our society has a legitimate interest in ensuring that criminals leave our country,” explained Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU). “We stand for control, consistency, and a clear stance.” The coalition partner SPD welcomed the deportation of “serious criminals.” It was “the right signal,” said parliamentary secretary Dirk Wiese to the AFP news agency. And it was in line with “the agreement we made in the coalition agreement.”
“The vast majority of those who have arrived here and are seeking protection abide by the law and are urgently needed in view of the shortage of skilled workers and labor,” Wiese continued. “But those who do not play by the rules must also bear the consequences and when push comes to shove, leave. That's how the rule of law works. And the state must have that option.”
The left wing in the Bundestag criticized the deportation to Syria. “Syria is still not safe,” deputy faction leader Clara Bünger told AFP. “Numerous recent reports document torture, arbitrary arrests, disappearances, and violence.” The fact that the federal government is “investing hundreds of thousands of euros in symbolic deportation policies while at the same time seeking contacts with the new rulers and the HTS is dangerous and politically irresponsible.”
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