An Egyptian human rights group has denounced the deportation of an Afghan refugee, saying the move violates both Egyptian law and international agreements.
The Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms said that Abdul Haq Amruddin, a registered refugee, faced imminent deportation to Afghanistan despite holding valid asylum and residency documents. The group called the deportation a “serious breach” of Egypt’s constitution and international refugee protection agreements.
“Egypt’s authorities are participating in a crime by deporting him,” said Mohamed Saeed, director of ECRF’s refugee support program, in a statement to Al Manassa.
According to Saeed, Amruddin was arrested on Sept. 30 after falling victim to a scam involving a fake scholarship grant. He was lured to a kiosk under the pretense of collecting 2,000 Egyptian pounds in school support for his children. Instead, he was accused of transferring 20,000 pounds via the kiosk and was arrested following a language-miscommunication-induced altercation.
Although prosecutors later confirmed that Amruddin had been defrauded and released him after a settlement, security forces transferred him to the National Security Agency and then to the Passports, Immigration and Nationality Administration, which ordered his deportation.
His wife was instructed to book a flight to Afghanistan, but she refused, citing both financial hardship and the threat to his life. Later, the Afghan Embassy in Cairo informed her it had secured a ticket on his behalf.
Saeed said the deportation violates Egypt’s 2024 asylum law and the principle of non-refoulement, enshrined in the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol. Egypt is a signatory to both.
“Deporting him means sending him into the unknown—possibly prison or death,” Saeed said, noting that Amruddin would be unable to contact either his lawyer or family if returned to Afghanistan.
ECRF said Amruddin is a registered refugee with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Cairo and legally resides in Egypt. In a statement Tuesday, the group warned that deporting him would place his life and safety at immediate risk due to the political circumstances that forced him to flee his home country.
The organization called for his immediate release and for Egypt to uphold its constitutional and international obligations to protect refugees, especially those with families in the country. Amruddin is married and has four children.
