Ashti Abdi, 20 years old, Yazidi, had been working as a waiter at the traditional Munich restaurant “Augustiner am Platzl” until recently. He has been paying his taxes on time and has been acquiring basic German language skills.
However, about three years after his arrival in Germany, Abdi was deported, as reported by “Bild”. He bid farewell at Munich Airport under tears from his mother Bashar, his brother Aziz, and his sister Shame.
Authorities examined Abdi’s asylum application for three years
During these three years, the authorities examined Abdi’s asylum application, as reported by “Bild”. Eventually, the application was rejected, leading to Abdi being taken from Munich to Istanbul and then to Iraq.
Meanwhile, Abdi’s employer in Munich, restaurant manager Oliver Wendel, had different plans.
Abdi had been a good employee, who had never done anything wrong. Therefore, Wendel had already offered him an apprenticeship to become a restaurant specialist. Abdi had signed the corresponding contract before his departure.
Abdi’s lawyer is now negotiating with the authorities. If everything went well, the apprenticeship contract and Abdi’s proven good conduct in Munich could turn his fate around.
Abdi took more language tests than demanded by the authorities
This could also work in Abdi’s favor, as he had made efforts to acquire more language skills than required of him.
“[The language level] A2 is usually sufficient, in combination with an apprenticeship contract, for a residence permit,” said Abdi’s lawyer Julian Stöckl to “Bild”. However, Abdi had additionally taken a test for the higher B1 level, although the results were pending.
Furthermore, the asylum applications of Abdi’s siblings, who are working as a security officer and a dental assistant in training, respectively, have been approved.
Yazidis are partly persecuted by radical Islamists in Iraq
There are about 700,000 Yazidis living in Iraq. As an ethnic and religious minority, they are considered “infidels” and have been repeatedly victims of persecution and attacks by radical Islamists in the past.
On August 14, 2007, Yazidis in Iraq were victims of the Sinjar bombing, in which 796 people were killed.
On August 3, 2014, the Islamic State committed genocide against Yazidis in the Sinjar region in northern Iraq, resulting in an estimated 5,000 to 10,000 Yazidis being killed by ISIS and another 6,000 to 7,000 Yazidi women and children being abducted.
