Germany’s deportation of Nigerian nationals has sparked mixed reactions online after African Folder shared figures showing that at least 137 Nigerians were deported through five documented charter operations between February and June 2026, according to records from a migrant-support organisation monitoring the returns.
Joint EU Charter Flights and Removal Data
"European governments are accelerating deportations under Chancellor Friedrich Merz, despite irregular EU border crossings falling nearly 40 percent in early 2026".
The post said one of the operations was a joint European Union deportation flight hosted by Germany, with Spain, Austria and Belgium participating.
During the March operation, 50 people were deported, including 37 whose removals were enforced by Germany.
Records from Refugees4Refugees confirm that the March 10 operation involved Germany, Spain, Austria and Belgium, with 50 people returned to Lagos and Germany responsible for 37 of the deportations.
Mixed Public and Social Media Reactions
The development attracted a range of reactions from Instagram users.
One commenter wrote, “😮😮,” while another simply responded, “😂😂😂😂😂😂.” A third user took a more political position, saying, “I want to see Nigeria taking Germany to the ICJ 😂.”
Another commenter questioned the decision of Nigerians to choose Germany as a destination, writing, “We have so many European countries; why choose Germany, a place where it's difficult to get documents?”
Italy was also brought into the discussion, with one user claiming, “You’ll hardly see Italy doing all these 😫😫. We should be worshiping those people. They really helped Nigerians.” Another commenter asked a broader question about migration, writing, “Why do these people want to leave Nigeria?”
Strict Enforcement of EU Immigration Rules
The deportations form part of wider European efforts to enforce immigration and asylum rules and return people who do not have the legal basis to remain.
Germany has previously participated in joint European deportation operations to Nigeria.
In February 2026, Refugees4Refugees documented another deportation from Germany to Nigeria, while its records also show that German authorities have conducted multiple charter operations involving European partners.
