The current German government is reportedly continuing to fly migrants into Germany despite commitments from the incoming black-red coalition, led by CDU leader Friedrich Merz, to limit immigration and potentially terminate refugee admission programs.
According to recent reports by Bild, secret preparations are underway for an upcoming flight scheduled to arrive in Hanover from Cairo, Egypt, just 11 days before the planned election of Merz as chancellor.
The flight is set to land discreetly in the early morning hours of April 25, bringing approximately 170 migrants, about two-thirds of whom hold Sudanese citizenship. Documents from the Federal Ministry of the Interior, under Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD), reportedly cite Germany’s Residence Act as the legal basis for the flight, which authorizes the ministry to permit admission for selected asylum seekers under resettlement programs the new government has vowed to abolish.
The announcement of the latest flight comes just a day after Germany’s Federal Administrative Court authorized the return of migrants to Greece for the first time in years, allowing the federal government to expel those who flout the rules and travel on through several safe countries to reach Germany.
Instead, it seems Berlin is intent on taking migrants directly from the source.
The Ministry of the Interior explained to BILD that, since coalition negotiations began between the CDU, CSU, and SPD, resettlement activities had generally been paused. Exceptions were made for cases where admissions were already significantly advanced, involving specific obligations or the protection of legitimate expectations.
Afghanistan, jetzt Süd-Sudan, demnächst Gaza – es geht immer weiter, denn sie sind einwanderungsbesoffen! pic.twitter.com/1SyU4xmVDy
— Dr. Maximilian Krah MdB (@KrahMax) April 16, 2025
These exceptions have included several flights from a German refugee center in Pakistan’s capital of Islamabad, where hundreds of Afghan nationals have been brought to Germany in recent weeks.
A spokesperson for Faeser declined to provide detailed comments on this specific flight, stating, “In principle, the Ministry of the Interior does not comment in advance on possible upcoming flights.”
Germany’s resettlement commitments were made in 2023 to both the EU and the United Nations, pledging a total of 6,560 resettlement places in 2025 — the largest contingent among EU nations. Refugees and stateless individuals from countries such as Egypt, Jordan, Kenya, Lebanon, Pakistan, and Libya are part of the planned resettlement.
The government claims it is legally obliged to follow through with promises of resettlement to those whose visas are mostly completed, and for whom exit permits have already been requested.
Germany’s right-wing Alternative for Germany (AfD) sharply criticized the continuing resettlement policy. AfD co-leader Alice Weidel took to X to voice her disapproval, writing, “In addition to the planes carrying Afghans, the government is now also secretly flying Sudanese to Germany. A total of 6,560 additional migrants are to be ‘settled’ in this way by 2025. Germany is not a ‘settlement area’ — the AfD will put an end to this madness!”
Fellow AfD member and MP Max Krah similarly rebuked the government’s immigration stance, stating, “Afghanistan, now South Sudan, soon Gaza — it goes on and on, because they are drunk on immigration!”