Afghan footballer faces deportation from Germany

Nazima and Nazira Khairzad, sisters and athletes, fled Afghanistan and the Taliban in 2021 and built a family life in Germany. But now Nazira is facing deportation, and a second separation from her family.

"When I received the letter telling me I might be sent back to Italy, I was overcome by a deep sense of hopelessness, fear and uncertainty," said Nazira Khairzad. "I was very sad and shocked. Since then, my mum has lived in constant fear and stress. She hardly sleeps at night because she is afraid the police will suddenly come and take her daughter away."

After the Taliban seized power again in 2021, the Khairzad family fled Afghanistan separately. Nazira, now 21 , initially ended up in Italy. Her sister Nazima, two years older, eventually made it to Germany with the rest of the family via Pakistan. Nazira was only reunited with her family at the beginning of 2024, in the Frankfurt area.

"It was a difficult time. We weren't able to see each other for a long while," recalled Nazira. "But now we're happy to be reunited."

'My life was in danger'
Nazima and Nazira Khairzad have been inseparable since they were children in Afghanistan.

"I'm very proud of my sister, she's my role model and my best friend," Nazira told DW. The pair did everything together: Skiing, playing football, or climbing the mountains in their home province of Bamiyan. At first, their parents struggled to understand such pursuits, given that sport was not considered an acceptable leisure activity for women and girls in Afghanistan.Despite the social and cultural resistance, Nazima grew into a successful ski racer and mountaineer while Nazira became a goalkeeper in Afghanistan's national women's football team.

However, when the Taliban returned in August 2021, the sisters, like so many others, were forced to leave their home country. "My life in Afghanistan was in danger," said Nazira. "If I had stayed back then, the Taliban would probably have killed me."

Most female athletes in Afghanistan have fled since the regime, which has banned women from playing sport, regained power.

Facing deportation to Italy

The sisters had to find a way to live apart from each other in foreign countries. It was only after three difficult and isolated years in Italy that Nazira made it to Germany in 2024.

Now that they're reunited, Nazira says her family needs her help. "My mother is ill and needs my closeness, my support and emotional stability," she said. "We are very close." Her older sister, Nazima, also needs support: She was diagnosed with a brain tumor last year and had to undergo an operation.

But now Nazira faces deportation to Italy, the country that initially granted her residency. The family is trying to prevent her deportation with the help of their lawyer Elke Gabsa, despite the difficult legal footing. "If someone is recognized as a refugee in one country, it is fundamentally impossible to request protection in another [ EU] member state," Gabsa told DW.However, there have been exceptions in the past when the European Court of Justice has found "systemic deficiencies," for example in Greece or Italy, the lawyer said.

These systemic deficiencies can arise when refugees are threatened with inhumane or degrading treatment in the host country, but, as Gabsa pointed out, this case law has recently been adjusted.

Hope remains

Nazira's deportation back to Italy is therefore likely to stand. Nevertheless, she and her lawyer are trying to prevent the family being separated again. "In this case, it is also a violation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights if she [Nazira] is not allowed to be with her family, who need her support," said Gabsa.
Over the past few months, Nazira has built a life for herself in Germany, learned the language and even playing football again. "I work part-time and try to fully integrate into society," she said.

"I exercise regularly. Football plays a big role in my life. I used to train at AC Milan, and today it's my big dream to play in Frankfurt." For her, football is not just "a passion, but an opportunity to build my future."

Nazira hopes the courts will rule in her favor. "I want to stay in Germany, live with my family, work, play soccer and be an active, useful member of this society. I wish for a safe, dignified life that I can shape with a lot of commitment and hope."

This article was originally written in German.