Human Rights Watch (HRW) has issued an urgent call for the French government to immediately halt any plans to deport Afghan citizens, warning that diplomatic cooperation and technical engagements with de facto Taliban officials risk exposing returnees to severe human rights violations, torture, and systemic persecution.
The warning follows confirmation from French authorities that diplomatic and security channels have initiated “technical discussions” with the Taliban aimed at facilitating the removal of undocumented Afghan nationals residing in France who are categorized as threats to public order. While diplomatic sources indicate that hundreds of individuals could potentially be impacted, exact figures remain unconfirmed.
Fereshta Abbasi, Afghanistan researcher at Human Rights Watch, criticized the talks as a dangerous shift in migration policy. She emphasized that Paris has failed to provide verifiable protection guarantees or safety frameworks for returning citizens, particularly women, girls, and individuals associated with civil society or past governance structures.
“French cooperation with the Taliban on a returns process would be with full knowledge of the Taliban’s responsibility for grave human rights violations and systematic oppression,” Abbasi stated. “No country should be forcing refugees to return to Afghanistan so long as the Taliban continues to commit widespread human rights abuses.”
Rights advocates note that these discussions occur against the backdrop of ongoing international scrutiny regarding systemic gender and political persecution in Afghanistan. Human rights organizations continue to urge European governments to uphold international non-refoulement obligations, maintaining that diplomatic expediency must not override the physical safety and protection of asylum seekers fleeing repressive rule.