The withdrawal of western troops from Afghanistan will lead to new "migration flows", Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz has told German media. Deportations from Austria to Afghanistan will continue nonetheless, the head of government said.
Norway has temporarily suspended deportations of failed asylum seekers to Afghanistan, according to the country's two immigration authorities, UDI and UNE. The country follows similar decisions taken recently by Sweden and Finland.
The Belgian government announced a breakthrough on Wednesday, as hundreds of migrants stopped their hunger strike in Brussels after authorities signalled their willingness to renegotiate the situation. However, it is not clear if they will ultimately gain the right to remain in the country.
Sweden is stopping all deportations to Afghanistan, citing the deteriorating security situation in the country. It comes after Finland last week became the first European country to announce a freeze on forced returns.
In light of the withdrawal of NATO troops from Afghanistan, refugee charity Pro Asyl has urged the German Federal Foreign Office to prepare a new status report and take into account the developments of the past few weeks.
The public debate in Germany on deporting violent or criminal migrants and refugees has been rekindled following the deadly knife attack in the city of Würzburg on June 25. However, the dimension of mental health issues and lack of access to psychological care is also being stressed following the deaths of three women in the attack.
More than 40 UK rights organizations sent a public letter to British Home Secretary Priti Pratel on Monday. They were united in condemning the introduction of 24-hour GPS monitoring of people on immigration bail in an expansion of surveillance powers that has been done without any consultation process.
Following a recent deportation flight from Germany to Afghanistan, the German government said it will continue with the practice. Critics say Afghanistan is too dangerous and rejected asylum seekers should not be sent back there.
The Lebanese authorities have expelled 15 Syrian refugees from among a group of people who had tried in recent days to reach the coast of Cyprus but were pushed back by Cypriot authorities.
German authorities were unable to establish the origins of more than 470 people seeking asylum last year. Meanwhile, fewer rejected asylum seekers have been deported due to the pandemic.
The Spanish government is hoping some of its mainland regions will agree to take on some of the more than 1,500 unaccompanied minors who arrived in the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, on the African continent, over the last few days.
Nearly 6,000, mostly Moroccan, migrants irregularly entered the Spanish territory of Ceuta on Monday – the largest number of migrant arrivals ever recorded there over the course of a single day. But what prompted the sudden influx, and how was it even possible? InfoMigrants takes a closer look at the mechanisms behind the sudden mass border-crossing.