Austria deports 11 people in latest crackdown on illegal immigration
Eleven people were deported from Austria to Croatia on Wednesday, as confirmed by the Ministry of the Interior. The group included six men and five women who do not have valid residence permits. Seven of them are from Afghanistan, two from Russia, one from Turkey, and one woman from Somalia.
The charter flight, organized and coordinated by Austria, took off at 10 a.m. as part of what is called the "National Return Operation." Interior Minister Gerhard Karner considered this measure part of a "consistent, strict, and therefore fair asylum policy." He explained that about 35 people leave Austria daily on average, which amounts to approximately 13,000 annually, more than half of whom are convicted of crimes.
Officials confirmed that none of the eleven deported individuals had a final criminal conviction against them. However, the Austrian government continues to focus on deporting those who reside illegally or who have been involved in serious crimes. The ministry reiterated that deportation is a necessary tool to maintain the credibility of the asylum system.
As Austria prepares for more deportations, especially concerning Afghan nationals, a meeting took place last week between Austrian officials and representatives from Afghanistan, during which 30 convicted Afghan criminals were identified for deportation. Their crimes varied from attempted murder, rape, robbery, assault, theft, extortion, serious threats, resisting authority, and drug offenses.
The Ministry of the Interior stated that it is "working intensively" to facilitate deportation operations to Afghanistan and Syria, despite the significant complications these steps pose. Austria sees itself at the forefront of European countries regarding the implementation of a strict yet fair asylum policy.