KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Amnesty International has called on the European Union and its member states to immediately halt efforts to deport Afghan nationals to Afghanistan, saying the country remains unsafe for forced returns and that such moves could breach international law.
In a letter addressed to European Commissioner Magnus Brunner and the EU Interior Minister, Amnesty stated that recent efforts by EU institutions and member states to establish cooperation with the Taliban on deportation were “reckless” and “unconscionable.”
Amnesty said a Taliban delegation visited Brussels on June 23, 2026, for talks with the European Commission and representatives of 15 EU member states on technical cooperation for returns and readmissions. The meeting followed a Commission invitation issued on May 12, a Commission visit to Kabul in January, and earlier appeals by 19 EU member states and Norway for coordinated efforts to speed up returns.
“Afghanistan is not safe for forced returns. Even before the Taliban de facto authorities took power in August 2021, the country was not a safe destination for returns,” Amnesty said. It cited widespread human rights violations, restrictions on fundamental freedoms, and particular risks faced by women, girls, and ethnic and religious minorities under Taliban rule.
The organization said the Taliban have dismantled legal protections for fundamental rights and introduced policies that discriminate against women, girls, and minority communities. It also alleged arbitrary arrests, unlawful detention, enforced disappearances, torture and other abuses, while saying women and girls had been largely excluded from public life.
Amnesty also pointed to a deteriorating humanitarian situation driven by drought, natural disasters, and reduced aid, describing Afghanistan as the world’s third-largest humanitarian crisis with nearly 22 million people in need of assistance. It further noted continued cross-border hostilities between the Taliban and Pakistan that have harmed civilians, damaged infrastructure, and caused further displacement.
The organization warned that resumed deportations could expose returnees to serious human rights violations and place European states at risk of violating the principle of non-refoulement, which bars returns to places where people face a real risk of serious harm. It also cautioned that cooperation on returns of Afghans convicted of crimes or deemed security threats could open the door to broader deportations.
Amnesty called on the European Union and its member states to abandon plans for return and readmission cooperation with the Taliban and to refrain from resuming deportations to Afghanistan. It said any future engagement with the Taliban should remain focused on addressing what it described as widespread and systematic human rights violations in the country.
The appeal comes as several EU member states, including Germany, Belgium, and Austria, have moved to intensify deportations of Afghan nationals whose asylum applications have been rejected or who have been convicted of crimes. Last month, the European Commission hosted a Taliban delegation in Brussels for what it described as a technical meeting on facilitating direct deportations to Afghanistan.
Earlier this week, Germany deported 31 Afghan nationals on a direct flight to Kabul, including one person without a criminal conviction, according to German media. The reports said Germany has deported about 215 Afghans over the past two years.
The United Nations, some EU lawmakers, and human rights groups have criticized both the rise in returns to Taliban-ruled Afghanistan and increased official contacts with the group, arguing the country remains unsafe for forced returns and that engagement risks legitimizing a regime accused of widespread rights abuses.
