More church asylum cases in Berlin
The number of cases of church asylum has been on the rise in Berlin in recent months. The German capital has a long history of hosting people seeking protection in churches.
church asylum
Germany: Government opposes easing of church asylum rules
The German government has confirmed that its current approach to church asylum will continue as it is. Since a changeover in leadership last year, there were hopes that the practice of church asylum would become more liberalized.
Church asylum: Nun acquitted in Germany
A German nun, accused of abetting illegal immigration and fined for granting church asylum to two Nigerian women last year, has been acquitted by a district court.
Blind Syrian granted asylum, is allowed to stay in Germany
Following two stints of church asylum and over three years of uncertainty, a blind Syrian asylum seeker has been awarded refugee status and can therefore remain in Germany. The 27-year-old no longer has to live in fear of getting deported to Spain.
Ruling in church asylum case creates legal precedent in Germany
In 2020, a monk in Germany decided to take in a rejected asylum seeker from the Palestinian Territories who was facing deportation. For years, the legality of such an interpretation of church asylum remained unclear. Now, for the first time ever in Germany, there is a final ruling on this kind of case, which could serve as a legal precedent for future trials.
Germany: Syrian asylum seeker given a rare second chance
In a town in southern Germany, a weight has been lifted for Mheddin Saho. The Syrian, who is blind, has been given a second chance to apply for protection in Germany and is no longer in church asylum.
Słubfurt: A welcoming space for migrants between Germany and Poland
Sorting out clothing to send to the Belarusian border, finding an asylum lawyer and creating paintings are all in a day's work for Michael Kurzwelly. The artist has been trying to realize his vision of an open society since long before refugees were gathered at Europe's razor wire fences.
Germany: Pastor convicted for providing church asylum
Two years on probation and a monetary fine: That's the latest court ruling in Germany on a church asylum case. A pastor had granted protection to a young, apparently well-integrated Iranian migrant. The clergyman might get pardoned.
Germany: Blind Syrian seeks refuge in church
A blind Syrian, Mheddin Saho, is back in church asylum for a second time after a court ruled that he could be sent back to Spain where he had first applied for protection. Saho has been in Germany for more than two years and is about to finish his master's degree.
German nun fined for granting church asylum to Nigerian women
A German court has charged a nun €500 for assisting Nigerian women threatened with deportation from Germany. The two women reportedly fled from forced prostitution in Italy. Different groups criticized the court order and called for a decriminalization of church asylum.
German monk acquitted in trial on church asylum
A German court has ruled that a monk's action in a case of church asylum was protected by the freedom of faith and conscience laid out in the German constitution. The monk in Bavaria had provided refuge to a man born in the Gaza Strip.
Mother Mechthild: 'I am not a criminal'
Mother Mechthild, the German nun who offers church asylum to migrants in the German state of Bavaria, is about to go on trial, for doing just that. She spoke to a local newspaper on Monday, Mittelbayerische Zeitung, about her work.