No fewer than thirty-six Nigerians have been deported from four European countries in a coordinated operation that saw 41 people returned to Nigeria and Ghana by charter flight, highlighting the continued enforcement of immigration decisions across parts of Europe.
The Nigerians were removed from Austria, Germany, Luxembourg and Hungary during an operation organised by Germany and supported by the three other countries, Austrian news outlet Heute.at reported.
Three Nigerians were deported from Austria, while Germany returned 29. Luxembourg accounted for two, and Hungary one. The deportees were flown to Lagos and Accra between Wednesday night and Thursday morning.
A total of 35 people travelled from Germany on the charter flight. They comprised 29 Nigerians, five Ghanaians, and one Gambian.
The operation involved cooperation among the participating European authorities, with Germany coordinating the flight and Austria, Luxembourg, and Hungary providing support.
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One of the Nigerians deported from Austria had previously been convicted of drug-related offences, the report said.
Austria’s Interior Minister, Gerhard Karner, used the operation to reinforce his government’s position on the removal of people living in the country without legal status and those convicted of crimes.
“The negative net migration is being continued through a consistent deportation policy,” Karner said.
He added that Austrian authorities had removed more illegal residents and criminal offenders during the first half of the year than ever before.
“Never before have so many illegal residents and criminal offenders been removed from the country by Austrian authorities as in the first half of this year. We will continue on this necessary path undeterred,” the minister said.
The latest returns affect Nigerians alongside citizens of other African countries who were subject to deportation decisions in the participating states.
The joint arrangement also shows how European countries can combine resources for removals, rather than conducting every deportation separately.
For the Nigerians involved, the immediate outcome is their return to Lagos following immigration action taken in the four European countries.
The operation comes amid Austria’s stated determination to sustain the removal of people classified by its authorities as illegal residents or criminal offenders. Karner’s comments indicate that deportation will continue to feature prominently in the country’s migration enforcement policy.
