Germany begins plan to deport Syrians with criminal records

The German newspaper Bild revealed that German authorities deported a Syrian national convicted of criminal offenses to Syria on Wednesday, in what is considered one of the rarest deportations since the outbreak of the Syrian revolution in 2011.

According to the report, the deportee is Mazen A., 32, who was serving multiple prison sentences in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, including six years and four months for drug trafficking and ten months for assault.

Bild confirmed that the deportation took place on a scheduled flight from Istanbul to Damascus, escorted by members of the German Federal Police. He was transported directly from the detention center to the airport.

Political Background and Closed Meetings

The deportation coincided with a closed meeting held at the Sion Monastery in Upper Bavaria, which brought together leaders of the Christian Social Union (CSU) party, including Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt, along with EU Commissioner for Migration Magnus Brunner. During the meeting, the party's parliamentary group discussed what it called the "Deportation Offensive 2026" plan, which aims to expand the deportation of Syrians, particularly those convicted of crimes.

The Bild newspaper quoted an official spokesperson for the Federal Ministry of the Interior as saying that the latest deportation falls within a clear policy targeting perpetrators of serious crimes, emphasizing that the deportee had "multiple convictions for violent and drug-related offenses."

The Interior Ministry's Position

In statements to Bild, Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt stressed that Germany "will continue to deport criminals, including to Syria and Afghanistan," adding that "those who commit serious crimes within the country cannot claim to remain," and that this policy is being implemented "consistently."

Bild noted that this operation came within the framework of agreements reached in late 2025 between Germany and the Syrian authorities, headed by President Ahmed al-Sharaa, which allow for the regular deportation of criminals and those classified as security threats. The latest deportee is only the second person to be returned to Syria since the beginning of the war, reflecting the exceptional nature of this measure. Calls for Stricter Measures

Despite this, the Christian Social Union (CSU) is demanding stricter measures, including: increasing the number of deportations, establishing departure centers across Germany, allocating a dedicated deportation terminal at Munich Airport, reducing social benefits for those required to leave the country to the constitutional minimum, and establishing return centers outside the European Union for rejected asylum seekers, such as in African countries including Uganda.

These developments come amidst a broad political and social debate within Germany regarding asylum and immigration policies, between those who see the need for stricter measures for security reasons and those who warn against generalizing deportations to large groups of refugees.

Fares Al-Rifai - Zaman Al-Wasl