Islamabad/Kabul (dpa) - An Afghan refugee deported from Germany due to a procedural error received his visa at the German embassy in Pakistan on Wednesday, clearing his way for a return.The man, identified as Hashmatullah F, had to travel to the German embassy in Pakistan‘s capital, Islamabad, since the German embassy in Afghanistan is closed after being severely damaged in a major bombing in Kabul earlier this year. "I am very happy," the man told dpa during a conversation in Islamabad, adding that he "cannot believe" he is returning to Germany.F‘s visa is valid for three months. When exactly he would fly back to Germany remained unclear.The International Organisation of Migration (IOM), upon the request of the German authorities, is helping with the journey. "We will book a flight for Mr F as soon as he has his German visa," an IOM officer had told dpa previously.On his original journey from Afghanistan to Germany, F was first officially registered in Bulgaria, his point of entry into the EU. Germany‘s Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) had mistakenly allowed for F‘s deportation to Bulgaria in the summer, despite the fact that an emergency appeal against the deportation had been submitted by his lawyer and was pending at the administrative court in the town of Sigmaringen.Such emergency appeals protect the applicant from deportation until the case is decided.According to the EU‘s Dublin Regulation, Bulgaria would be responsible for processing his asylum claim. However, the man‘s lawyer, Markus Niedworok, argued that, in Bulgaria, "because of systematic deficiencies, fair asylum procedures cannot be expected."After being deported to Bulgaria, F said he had been forced to declare his willingness for a voluntarily return to Afghanistan, after he had been beaten. F is expected in Sigmaringen on December 21, where the administrative court will finally determine whether Bulgaria or Germany is responsible for his case. If Germany ends up being responsible, the normal asylum procedure would begin, said his lawyer. The likelihood of his claim being accepted is not clear.
