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DUHOK, Kurdistan Region - Despite suffering from serious health conditions, German authorities last month deported a Kurdish family, from Kurdistan Region’s Duhok province, back to Iraq.
Abdulla was deported on a chartered flight from Frankfurt to Baghdad on April 5.
"They raided our place and broke the doors. They forcefully woke us up. They took us to the Frankfurt airport and from there we were deported to Baghdad," Abdulla told Rudaw on Tuesday.
Abdulla suffers from chronic skin diseases. Scars of giant wounds are visible on his legs and back. He says two of his children have chronic heart and skin ailments.
Germany is a favored destination country for Kurds and Iraqis who want to immigrate to Europe.
Over the weekend, around 30 Iraqi immigrants were also deported to Baghdad, Saeed Mohammed Shukri, one of the deported individuals, told Rudaw on Tuesday.
Saadiya Mohammed, Abdulla's wife told Rudaw that they spent all they had in possession to reach Germany.
"We endured plenty of suffering to reach Germany through smuggling routes. On our way to Germany, I was even split from my children for a week. We were there for four years,” she said, recounting the dangerous journey to Germany.
According to Mohammed, her children were attending school in Germany, at the same time they were receiving treatment for their illnesses along with their father.
“We did not go there for leisure, but to treat our people. I was forced to go there. We had a piece of land, we sold it. We had a two-room house here, so we sold it. We sought asylum there for our ill people," she said.
The deported family has nowhere to go. They have temporarily been given a room at the Duhok orphanage house until they find a new house.
"We have given them shelter for a limited period. We can let them stay here for seven to 10 more days maximum," Guhdar Younis, head of the Duhok orphanage house said. "Because this place is only for orphans. We have given the family a room and moved the orphans and their belongings temporarily to another room."
It is unclear how many Iraqis have been deported from Germany so far to Iraq in 2024.
The country deported more than 500 Iraqi nationals in 2023.
Each year, tens of thousands of predominantly young individuals depart Iraq and the Kurdistan Region, seeking improved prospects in Europe. In pursuit of a better life, they navigate perilous smuggling routes, risk their lives in harsh and freezing travel conditions, and undertake treacherous sea crossings to reach mainland Europe or the United Kingdom.
In an interview with Rudaw in August 2023, Gonul Eglence, a member of the regional parliament of North Rhine-Westphalia, said that Iraqi asylum seekers must not be deported to Iraq because it is an unsafe country. She explained that many individuals cannot be deported because they could face political persecution or their lives would be at risk due to their religious beliefs.
"Those people will not be deported. Instead, they receive Duldung. That means they can stay temporarily," Eglence said.
Abdulla was deported on a chartered flight from Frankfurt to Baghdad on April 5.
"They raided our place and broke the doors. They forcefully woke us up. They took us to the Frankfurt airport and from there we were deported to Baghdad," Abdulla told Rudaw on Tuesday.
Abdulla suffers from chronic skin diseases. Scars of giant wounds are visible on his legs and back. He says two of his children have chronic heart and skin ailments.
Germany is a favored destination country for Kurds and Iraqis who want to immigrate to Europe.
Over the weekend, around 30 Iraqi immigrants were also deported to Baghdad, Saeed Mohammed Shukri, one of the deported individuals, told Rudaw on Tuesday.
Saadiya Mohammed, Abdulla's wife told Rudaw that they spent all they had in possession to reach Germany.
"We endured plenty of suffering to reach Germany through smuggling routes. On our way to Germany, I was even split from my children for a week. We were there for four years,” she said, recounting the dangerous journey to Germany.
According to Mohammed, her children were attending school in Germany, at the same time they were receiving treatment for their illnesses along with their father.
“We did not go there for leisure, but to treat our people. I was forced to go there. We had a piece of land, we sold it. We had a two-room house here, so we sold it. We sought asylum there for our ill people," she said.
The deported family has nowhere to go. They have temporarily been given a room at the Duhok orphanage house until they find a new house.
"We have given them shelter for a limited period. We can let them stay here for seven to 10 more days maximum," Guhdar Younis, head of the Duhok orphanage house said. "Because this place is only for orphans. We have given the family a room and moved the orphans and their belongings temporarily to another room."
It is unclear how many Iraqis have been deported from Germany so far to Iraq in 2024.
The country deported more than 500 Iraqi nationals in 2023.
Each year, tens of thousands of predominantly young individuals depart Iraq and the Kurdistan Region, seeking improved prospects in Europe. In pursuit of a better life, they navigate perilous smuggling routes, risk their lives in harsh and freezing travel conditions, and undertake treacherous sea crossings to reach mainland Europe or the United Kingdom.
In an interview with Rudaw in August 2023, Gonul Eglence, a member of the regional parliament of North Rhine-Westphalia, said that Iraqi asylum seekers must not be deported to Iraq because it is an unsafe country. She explained that many individuals cannot be deported because they could face political persecution or their lives would be at risk due to their religious beliefs.
"Those people will not be deported. Instead, they receive Duldung. That means they can stay temporarily," Eglence said.
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