KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Belgium’s Minister for Asylum and Migration, Annelien Van Bossuyt, has said that around 60 Afghan nationals who are in the country illegally and currently serving prison sentences could face deportation after completing their sentences.
Speaking during a plenary session of the Belgian parliament on Friday, October 2, Van Bossuyt said the government would continue to pursue stricter measures on the entry and removal of migrants.
Van Bossuyt said around 60 Afghan men who are residing illegally in Belgium are currently serving prison sentences and are subject to deportation after completing their sentences.
She said she did not want those individuals to be released onto the streets of Belgium after completing their prison terms and potentially cause further harm to members of the public. Van Bossuyt described the situation as “inhumane” and said the group included people convicted of murder and rape.
The minister also called on her coalition partners to ensure that progress on the return of people to their countries of origin accompanies any discussions about special arrangements or legal admission for other groups of migrants.
Van Bossuyt made the remarks during a parliamentary debate over calls for Belgium to make an exception for 13 Palestinian students from Gaza who have been admitted to Belgian universities. Some members of parliament had urged the government to issue visas to the students without requiring them to appear in person at a Belgian diplomatic mission.
Responding to those calls, Van Bossuyt said that if Belgium were to make exceptions, it should first consider Afghan girls who have been deprived of access to education under Taliban rule.
She also said Belgium had provided extensive assistance to people from Gaza relative to its population, including the transfer of patients for medical treatment. According to the minister, about 320 people were then on an emergency transfer list and were required to visit a Belgian diplomatic mission.
Van Bossuyt argued that it would be inconsistent to make an exception for students from Gaza while not making one for Afghan girls deprived of education, or for around 100 Senegalese gay men who, she said, were afraid to visit their consulate.
Belgium has been tightening its migration and deportation policies. The Belgian parliament is currently considering legislation concerning the removal of foreign nationals, including a government proposal related to police access to residences in certain immigration cases. The proposal remains under parliamentary discussion.
The Belgian government has also reported an increase in the removal of foreign nationals convicted of crimes. A recent parliamentary statement said that 1,575 people described by the government as “criminal illegal residents” were removed from Belgium in 2025, while more than 1,200 had been removed during the first part of 2026. These figures were presented by Belgian government representatives in parliament.
Belgian authorities have previously emphasized that the removal of people without legal residence depends on identification, travel documents and cooperation with the countries concerned. Van Bossuyt has said the government is pursuing agreements with third countries to facilitate the readmission of people who have exhausted their legal options in Belgium.
The question of deporting Afghan nationals can be particularly complicated because of the political and security situation in Afghanistan and the absence of normal diplomatic relations between many European governments and the Taliban authorities. Any individual removal is also subject to Belgian and European legal procedures, including applicable protections against return where a person could face serious harm.
