Lure of Europe loses shine for Afghans
Zahedullah Sumarkhil had every reason to flee Afghanistan in 2014, in the vanguard of a wave of migrants that would soon flood into Europe.
He was a policeman. Taliban assassins on a motorcycle in his hometown of Jalalabad had staged an ambush that left his brother and a cousin dead. He knew he would be next.
“My mother said ‘Just go,’ ” recalls Mr. Sumarkhil, a compact man with a well-trimmed beard. “I fled to Germany to save myself.”
He traveled across Iran on foot for a month, suffered an attack by Bulgarian police dogs, and skulked in train toilets to avoid detection by officials. All the while he dreamed of a safe promised land.
But his saga – like that of a growing number of Afghans – ended back where it began. Sumarkhil was forcibly deported to his homeland last July, the victim of a controversial repatriation agreement between Kabul and the European Union.
Afghan and
Dissuading departures Showing 'the ground reality'Involuntary returnDream of escapeYou’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.
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