The governments of Germany and the Netherlands are under growing pressure from courts and human rights groups to process the asylum cases of Afghans deemed at risk, particularly those stranded in Pakistan.
Courts in both countries have ruled that authorities must act on the cases. In Germany, legal challenges and public criticism led to approval for 47 Afghans, including activists, artists and former judges, to enter the country.
The decision followed reports that more than 210 Afghans holding German admission papers were recently detained by Pakistani police and deported to Afghanistan. Many of the families had been waiting in Islamabad for months or even years for relocation.
A German Foreign Ministry spokesman said Berlin is pressing for their return to Pakistan and is holding talks with Islamabad to ease the process.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz said his government would uphold the commitments made by its predecessor but stressed that all Afghan refugees must undergo security checks before entry. Human rights groups have accused the government of “deliberate neglect” and have filed complaints against some ministers.
In the Netherlands, a court in The Hague ordered the government to accept 42 former guards of its embassy in Kabul and their families. The court said Dutch authorities had failed in their duty to these individuals and violated the law.
Thousands of Afghans who fled the Taliban to Pakistan are still waiting to be relocated to safe countries. Reports estimate more than 2,000 Afghans, including former employees of German institutions and others at risk, remain in Pakistan awaiting transfer to Germany.
