RASC News Agency: The German government is set to relocate more than 2,600 Afghanistani refugees currently stranded in Pakistan, under a standing resettlement commitment that Berlin has pledged to uphold despite political resistance within its own borders. According to a report published by Bild on Tuesday, April 15, the Afghanistani nationals many of whom have been directly threatened by the Taliban are scheduled to be transferred to Germany over the coming weeks. The operation reflects Germany’s long-term humanitarian strategy aimed at protecting vulnerable populations at risk due to their affiliations, professions, or advocacy efforts under Taliban rule.
The report confirms that the first flight is expected to depart tomorrow, carrying 162 individuals. Among them are former local employees who collaborated with international forces or Afghanistan’s previous government, and who now face credible threats from the Taliban. The group also includes 19 family members of those staffers. The remainder of the passengers are drawn from Afghanistan’s civil society journalists, educators, women’s rights advocates, and human rights defenders whose activities have made them prime targets of Taliban persecution. Their resettlement marks an urgent effort to extract them from immediate danger and ensure their safety.
Germany’s Federal Foreign Office has emphasized that these transfers are not merely logistical obligations, but acts of moral and political responsibility. “Germany has a particular duty to those who placed their trust in us, and who now face existential threats due to their commitment to democratic values,” the ministry stated. Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has confirmed that three additional flights are planned before the end of April. These evacuations, she said, represent a small but vital part of Germany’s broader engagement to assist Afghanistani refugees left behind in the wake of the 2021 withdrawal and the subsequent Taliban takeover.
“We are not simply fulfilling a promise we are extending a lifeline,” Baerbock remarked. “Those who resisted authoritarianism and stood for justice and human dignity deserve not only our protection but our enduring solidarity.” This initiative comes amid continued international condemnation of the Taliban’s repressive governance and widespread human rights violations. The exodus of Afghanistani citizens seeking sanctuary abroad reflects the acute humanitarian crisis unfolding under a regime that has systematically dismantled civic freedoms, particularly for women and minorities.
Germany’s resettlement effort is part of a broader global imperative to confront the consequences of Taliban rule not through silence or accommodation, but through tangible action in defense of those whose lives are endangered by tyranny.
