As allied forces struggled to evacuate thousands of refugees from Kabul amid threats of Islamic State retaliation, Croatian police reportedly robbed and forcibly returned to Bosnia and Herzegovina dozens of Afghans who had fled their country.
This was announced by the British newspaper "The Guardian", which collected the testimonies of Afghan asylum seekers and obtained an exclusive report by the Danish Refugee Council (DRC), which documented around 60 illegal returns allegedly carried out by the Croatian police between August 16 and August 29. over Afghan families in BiH who tried to reach Europe.
Forced return is a violation of the Universal Charter of Human Rights, the Geneva Conventions and EU legislation.
According to the testimony of the victims, the forced return included brutal and violent behavior, humiliating treatment and theft as well as the destruction of personal belongings, "The Guardian" writes.
"We were returned 12 times from the Croatian border. They stole our money and phones," said Zihaul al-Haq (25), who fled Afghanistan with his wife in 2016.
“The last time we were sent back was between August 20 and 21. Now Afghanistan is completely under the control of the Taliban, and we have been on the run for five and a half years. We are tired.”
The "Guardian" states that Afghans are the second most numerous on the Balkan route - "one of the most dangerous passages to Europe". It takes them through Bulgaria, North Macedonia or Serbia, then BiH, Croatia and Slovenia, from where they can finally go to Italy or Austria. The paper writes that hundreds of Afghan families are blocked at the border between Croatia and BiH, in Bihać or Bosanska Bojna. Those with children live in abandoned buildings without water or electricity. Many have fled Afghanistan in the past five years since the Taliban began conquering rural areas, carrying out bombings and dozens of random executions.
Accusations against the Croatian police of forcible return and ill-treatment are not new. Charitable organizations have been condemning abuses for years, and the European Commission has asked Croatia for clarification in several cases.
The Croatian police and the Croatian Ministry of the Interior deny the accusations, claiming that they are "determined to cooperate with the EU to prevent the recurrence of uncontrolled large-scale illegal migratory movements that we have faced in the past."
Meanwhile, the EU is preparing for one of the most dramatic humanitarian crises in recent history, writes "The Guardian", citing data from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees that 500.000 Afghans could flee by the end of the year. Those who recently fled the Taliban will join thousands of Afghans who left the country months or years ago, as well as asylum seekers from South Asia, the Middle East and North Africa trying to take the Balkan route.
According to the UN Migration Agency (IOM), Afghan citizens will soon become the most numerous asylum seekers in the Balkans. However, Afghanistan's neighbors, as well as much of Europe, have said that Afghan refugees are not welcome.
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