Germany is studying the possible deportation of approximately 2,400 Lebanese and refugees of other nationalities who previously lived in Lebanon, Lebanese sources in Germany were quoted by the Daily Star newspaper as saying Friday.
Officials from Germany’s Interior Ministry summoned Lebanese Ambassador, Mohammed Issa, last week to discuss the matter, said the paper, adding that Issa declined to meet with the officials on the grounds that such issues should be discussed with Lebanon’s foreign ministry.
However, he consented to discussing the issue with officials from the German interior ministry’s legal bureau earlier this week.
The sources said that the Lebanese authorities were concerned about the prospects of deporting the group and argued that the situation “continues to remain tense on the Lebanese-Israeli border.”
The authorities also attributed their lack of enthusiasm to the “bad economic situation.”
The Lebanese Embassy in Berlin has so far deported 200 people who were convicted of different crimes in Germany over the past few years, said the paper.
The sources said that many Lebanese immigrants who applied for residence visas were turned down by the German judiciary which normally issues similar visas.
But although German judicial authorities have refused to issue the visas, German immigration and foreign ministry officials have been unable to deport the immigrants due to Lebanon’s claims that the situation in the country was not suitable for their return, the Daily Star added.
Since 1992, following the end of the civil war, Germany has decided to deport between 10,000 and 12,000 Lebanese and other nationalities.
These include Kurds and Palestinians who resided in Lebanon and who use travel documents issued by the Lebanese authorities -- Albawaba.com
