Thirty-six Nigerians have been deported from four European countries as part of a coordinated repatriation exercise that returned 41 people to Nigeria and Ghana.
The deportees were returned on a chartered flight operated between Wednesday night and Thursday morning, with Lagos and Accra serving as the destinations.
According to Austrian news outlet, Heute.at, Germany coordinated the operation, with support from Austria, Luxembourg and Hungary.
The report stated that 29 Nigerians were deported from Germany, while Austria returned three, Luxembourg two and Hungary one.
It added that 35 deportees travelled from Germany, including 29 Nigerians, five Ghanaians and one Gambian.
One of the Nigerians deported from Austria had previously been convicted of drug-related offences.
The coordinated action comes amid continued efforts by several European governments to remove migrants without legal residency status as well as foreign nationals convicted of crimes.
Austria’s Interior Minister, Gerhard Karner, reaffirmed the government’s commitment to its deportation policy, particularly against illegal residents and criminal offenders.
“The negative net migration is being continued through a consistent deportation policy. Never before have so many illegal residents and criminal offenders been removed from the country by Austrian authorities as in the first half of this year. We will continue on this necessary path undeterred,” Karner said.
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