Germany updates: Berlin wants Afghanistan deportation deal

The Social Democrats (SPD) in Germany's local elections lost the Ruhr metropolis of Dortmund on Sunday, which had been governed by the party for almost 80 years.

Incumbent SPD Mayor Thomas Westphal lost a neck-and-neck race against Christian Democratic Union (CDU) challenger Alexander Omar Kalouti.

According to preliminary results, Kalouti won 52.92% of the vote, while Westphal received 47.08% of the vote.

In contrast, the SPD was able to hope for a victory in the state's largest city, Cologne. There, SPD politician and former sports official Torsten Burmester led the way over Berivan Aymaz of the Greens.

Incumbent Mayor Henriette Reker (independent) did not run for re-election after two terms in office.

In the state capital of North Rhine-Westphalia, Düsseldorf, a victory for the CDU was on the cards. There, the incumbent mayor, Stephan Keller (CDU), was ahead of Green Party politician Clara Gerlach.

In all three mayoral runoff elections in North Rhine-Westphalia that included the far-right populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, candidates from other parties won.

The AfD lost to Social Democratic Party (SPD) candidates in Gelsenkirchen and Duisburg, while the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) secured the top seat in Hagen.

The SPD is the junior partner in Germany's coalition government, which is led by Chancellor Friedrich Merz of the CDU.

The polls have closed, and the vote counting has begun for the runoff local elections in the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia.

Runoff elections were held in almost 150 municipalities, in places where none of the candidates received more than half of the votes in the first round two weeks ago.

Several mayors and district administrators have yet to be elected. In Cologne, candidates from the Social Democratic Party (SPD) and Green Party are competing against each other.

In Duisburg, Gelsenkirchen, and Hagen, however, candidates from the far-right populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party advanced to the second round and will face candidates from the SPD or Christian Democratic Union (CDU).

In Dortmund, which has been governed by the SPD for nearly 80 years, candidates from both parties, SPD and CDU, reached the second round.

A 27-year-old Spanish trapeze artist fell about five meters during an afternoon performance in Bautzen, Saxony, and died in the ring as nearly 100 spectators — including many children — looked on, police said on Sunday.

"The crisis intervention team was immediately on site and supported guests and circus staff," police spokesman Stefan Heiduck said. Authorities are treating the incident as a workplace accident and have found no signs of foul play.

Ralf Huppertz, head of the Association of German Circus Companies, called it a "tragic accident," noting that "artists accept certain risks they calculate and understand." 

He suggested the performer "must have fallen very unluckily or onto an obstacle," since five meters is not usually dangerous for trained artists.

Bautzen Mayor Karsten Vogt expressed his condolences: "On behalf of the city, I extend my sincere sympathy to the relatives and those affected by this terrible accident. Our thoughts are with the families and everyone impacted."

The German government plans to open direct negotiations with Afghanistan's Taliban authorities on deportations, Germany's Bild am Sonntag newspaper has reported, citing the Interior Ministry in Berlin.

"Deportations to Afghanistan must be able to take place regularly! That’s why we are now negotiating directly in Kabul so that criminals and dangerous individuals can be consistently deported in the future," Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt told the newspaper.

According to the report, Interior Ministry officials will travel to Kabul in October to discuss returning Afghan nationals convicted of crimes or deemed security threats. Deportations are expected to use regular commercial flights rather than chartered planes.

Welcome back to DW's coverage of what's happening in and around Germany.

You join us as Berlin says it is seeking a deal with Afghanistan's Taliban regime for the repatriation of Afghan criminals to the country.

A lot might hinge on talks between German Interior Ministry officials and the Taliban, expected to take place in October.

Stay with us for more news about the war and other related issues.

This liveblog is now paused. We will reactivate it later.

Thousands of people marched through central Berlin on Saturday, chanting for "international solidarity" and a "free Palestine."

The "All Eyes on Gaza" protest began outside city hall in the German capital and marched through the Tiergarten park.

Organized by some 50 groups, including the Left party, they were calling for a broad arms embargo against Israel. They were also demanding EU sanctions against the Israeli government for what many international organizations, including the United Nations, have called a genocide being carried out against Palestinians in Gaza.

Organizers said the demonstration drew more than 100,000 people to the streets of central Berlin, marking the largest Gaza rally the capital has seen to date.

In the early evening, a police spokeswoman estimated the crowd size at around 60,000, though she did not rule out a larger number.

A smaller, unaffiliated demonstration of about 1,200 people in the Berlin district of Kreuzberg was disbanded after police said that crimes had been committed by participants. This included causing bodily harm and the use of explosive materials, according to police.

Several other German cities, such as Düsseldorf, saw smaller solidarity protests throughout the afternoon.

Beginning in October, German doctors' practices will be required to use electronic patient files (ePA). This is meant to help doctors communicate better about a patient's needs and medical history  and to provide people living in Germany easier access to their health information.

However, a new survey by a medical newspaper of two major insurers, AOK and DAK, found that of their 50 million customers with electronic records, only 1.5 million had access to them.

The survey also revealed that many doctors' offices across the country lack the necessary technological infrastructure to run the ePA program.

Patients have long complained that the administrative side ofthe German medical system feels severely outdated. It relies on physical letters, paper prescriptions and referrals, and fax machines.

Film star and former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger visited Munich's Oktoberfest with his partner Heather Milligan and his son Christopher on Friday evening, where the 78-year-old took up the conductor's baton to lead a beer hall band and revelers in song.

A visibly jovial Schwarzenegger took to the bandstand at the Marstall tent, one of several at the annual three-week-long party, to rousing applause. 

Clad in a traditional Bavarian leather jacket with horn buttons, but sporting jeans rather than Lederhosen, Schwarzenegger posed for selfies with band members after his turn as conductor. 

Schwarzenegger, a native of neighboring Austria, has visited the event numerous times in the past.

Oktoberfest, the largest event of its kind in the world, attracts some 6 million visitors annually and runs from September 20 until October 5 this year.

The German tabloid newspaper Bild on Saturday reported that Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt is working on a proposal to allow the Bundeswehr, Germany's army, to shoot down unmanned drones over the country as a last resort in certain situations.

Germany's Rheinische Post also carried similar quotes  by Dobrindt.

The push comes on the heels of numerous incursions into NATO countries' airspace by suspected Russian drones. These have caused property damage and closed airports. The most recent incidents involve drones over Danish military installations and incursions into German airspace in the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein last Friday.

According to Bild, Dobrindt's plan would give last resort powers to the Bundeswehr when human lives or key infrastructure are at risk and no other effective options remain. 

An Interior Ministry spokesperson said that police remain responsible for illegal drones over sites such as train stations and airports but noted the new approach would allow all parties involved to adjust to the "dynamic threat situation."

"We are not only experiencing a turning point in military security, but also in civil defence and civil protection as a whole," he was quoted by the Rheinische Post as saying.

Dobrindt said he aims to create a drone defense network that would enable the close coordination of local, state and federal agencies.

Germany's GdP police union spoke out against the proposed change, noting that the police alone are responsible for domestic protection. 

In Germany, resistance against the arms race and militarization is growing. Many alliances are organizing demonstrations.

What unites them, what divides them?

DW looks at recent pacifist movements here.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul will address the United Nations General Assembly on Saturday.

While in New York this week, the German diplomat has advocated for Berlin's return to the Security Council as a non-permanent member — Austria and Portugal are also angling for one of the two seats when they become available in 2026.

Moreover, Wadephul has said that African and Latin American representatives should be given more say in the body.   

In the longterm, Germany is seeking to become a permanent Security Council member.

Wadephul is scheduled to address the General Assembly shortly after Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, whose country has been increasingly aggressive in its provocations against European NATO states during the execution of its ongoing invasion of neighboring Ukraine.

German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt on Saturday said Berlin hopes to strike a deportation deal with the Syrian government by year's end.

The deal will focus on the repatriation of Syrians who have been denied asylum yet remain in Germany. 

"We want to reach an agreement with Syria this year and initially deport criminals, followed later by those without legal residence," Dobrindt said in remarks published in the regional Rheinische Post newspaper.

"It is important to distinguish between people who are well integrated and working, and those without asylum rights who rely on social benefits," he continued, adding that talks would begin "shortly."

How many Syrians are in Germany?

Germany has not deported anyone to Syria since 2012. 

Dobrindt said he has instructed the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) to partially resume the review of paused asylum applications in order to determine who can stay and who must be deported.

Though numbers remain low, Germany's Interior Ministry said that 1,867 people had voluntarily returned to Syria between the fall of Bashar Assad last December and the end of August.

About 955,000 Syrian nationals are currently living in Germany according to BAMF's Central Register of Foreigners (AZR), with Interior Department data documenting that about 83,150 had become German citizens in 2024.

Berlin also keen on Afghans' deportation, Dobrindt says

Dobrindt said he also aims to establish "regular and systematic" deportations to Afghanistan.

To date, Berlin has only been able to deport criminal Afghans with the help of intermediary Qatar since Germany has no formal diplomatic ties to the ruling Taliban.

Human rights and refugee organizations criticized the two deportation flights Germany has carried out to Afghanistan so far, saying the country is unsafe under the hardline Islamist Taliban, who returned to power in 2021.

Guten Morgen from Bonn, where we begin the day's coverage of Germany news with the interior minister seeking a deportation deal with Syria, the foreign minister addressing the United Nations General Assembly in New York, and pro-Gaza protesters preparing to hit the streets in Berlin and beyond.

We'll cover these and other developments across Germany throughout the day. Stay tuned!