Citizens of Afghanistan residing in Germany and neighboring countries who visit the Afghan Consulate in Munich for consular services have voiced serious complaints about corruption, inefficiency, and abuse of authority at the mission. They accuse the Consul General and the consulate staff of bribery, and ethnic and linguistic discrimination. According to these clients, the Consul General appoints local employees as acting heads during absences, violating diplomatic protocols. Delays and failures in addressing applicants’ needs have repeatedly triggered protests and violent incidents.
Last week, a physical altercation broke out between applicants and consulate staff, during which one employee sustained a minor eye injury. The accused individual is currently in German police custody. Diplomatic sources have confirmed the eye injury, attributing it to the scuffle. These sources also noted that the Taliban have conditioned the issuance of passports on the transfer of funds from Germany to Afghanistan, resulting in a four-month halt in passport distribution despite applicants having already paid and submitted their information.
Sources in Germany, sharing video evidence showing a consulate staff member with an eye injury, confirmed that the injury was caused during a verbal and physical altercation with clients. Following the incident, German police intervened, an ambulance was dispatched, and security forces launched investigations on both sides. The sources attribute the frequent altercations to administrative inefficiencies, financial corruption, and delays in processing applicants’ requests.
According to reports, the altercation occurred after Yahya Khan, a consulate employee, told a client not to speak in an Iranian accent and not to wear a necklace. This escalated into a verbal argument and subsequently, a physical fight, during which Khan sustained a superficial eye injury.
Sources say the Afghan Consulate in Munich operates with limited administrative capacity while facing heavy demand from clients. The Taliban Foreign Ministry reportedly refuses to accept documents sent from other missions, which has further increased the workload of the Munich office.
One source stated: “There is a significant lack of organization at the consulate. It resembles a courtyard more than a diplomatic mission. Appointments are not scheduled in advance. Due to corruption and misuse of financial resources and diplomatic authority, this mission has aligned itself with the Taliban. The Consul General resides in London and, contrary to diplomatic standards, appoints local staff as supervisors during his travels. There is no transparency or accountability.”
Sources also revealed that even applicants who secured appointments six months ago are subjected to delays and neglect. The staff reportedly prioritizes those who paid money and secured appointments over the phone. Despite having sufficient revenue to expand the mission’s capacity, no improvements have been made. Instead, the funds are allegedly pocketed by the staff. The Consul General is reportedly in contact with the office of the Taliban Foreign Minister and is not held accountable by anyone.
The Consul General has also been accused of abusing his official authority by appointing local staff exclusively from one ethnic group. Sources claim he dismissed two former diplomats, prompting concern from the German Foreign Ministry. The ministry reportedly questioned whether these changes would disrupt the consulate’s operations, to which the Consul General responded that there would be no disruption.
Meanwhile, a diplomatic source reported that Yahya Khan’s condition remains poor. The source emphasized: “Applicants are problematic too, and experience shows this has always been the case, but there is no accountability at this consulate. Two diplomats were dismissed under various pretexts simply because they were not friends of the Consul General. They were former Foreign Ministry employees and were replaced by the Consul General’s acquaintances. The number of local staff has reached 20, but only Mr. Rahimi is a diplomat on this mission. I do not understand how Germany agreed to work with them.”
The source also raised concerns about the legal validity of local staff representing the consulate in German legal institutions. “Only diplomats are authorized to sign official documents, and this mission signs about 400 documents daily. Mr. Rahimi cannot manage all of them alone, which creates a significant administrative contradiction, as most local staff are either German citizens or have refugee status.”
Another diplomatic source stated that the consulate sends applicants’ documents to Kabul without proper oversight. Passports are then dispatched from Kabul. Although applicants have paid and registered their details over the past four months, the passports have not been delivered. According to the source, the Taliban have demanded that the passport fees be transferred to them directly.
Local sources said that Sifatullah Rahimi, the Consul General in Munich who was appointed by the former government, is now cooperating with the Taliban. He previously served as Chief of Staff to former Finance Minister Eklil Hakimi and was later appointed Minister Plenipotentiary in Brussels. About a year before the fall of the former government, he was assigned as Consul General in Munich.
Sources claim that the consulate has set up a photo and photocopy booth in its basement that generates more than 1,000 euros daily. There is reportedly no transparency or accountability regarding this income, much of which allegedly goes toward the Consul General’s entertainment and parties. Additionally, in 2021, applicants who had paid for passports were forced to pay again after their payments were misappropriated without any explanation.
Sources also report frequent loss of applicants’ documents at the Munich consulate, forcing them to submit copies repeatedly. Due to the absence of external photography and photocopy services, all documents are processed through the consulate’s internal booth.
Moreover, sources say the consulate refuses bank transfers and only accepts cash payments. This method lacks financial transparency, and consular documents are processed only upon direct approval from the Consul General or his affiliates, for a set fee.
These sources stressed that, despite traveling from distant cities and possessing absentee ID cards, many applicants still face serious challenges in getting their identities verified by the Taliban’s Foreign Ministry, resulting in repeated trips and months of confusion and hardship.
According to the sources, obtaining absentee ID cards through relatives in Afghanistan adds another layer of difficulty for those seeking passports and consular services in Germany. Even though their current IDs were issued by the previous government, applicants are now required to reapply for absentee IDs and have them verified by the Taliban’s Foreign Ministry.
Sources also noted that many applicants travel 8–9 hours from remote cities across Germany, often taking time off from work. Upon arrival, however, they are told that the consulate does not provide services to them, leading to frustration and anger that have, at times, resulted in verbal altercations and conflict.
Previously, diplomatic sources had raised concerns about the poor condition of some Afghan diplomatic missions in European countries and accused certain diplomats from the former government of abusing their authority and collaborating with the Taliban.
Sifat Rahimi, the Consul General of Afghanistan in Munich, Germany, has not responded to the Hasht-e Subh Daily’s inquiries on this matter at the time of publication.
You can read the Persian version of this report here:
کارشکنی در کنسولگری افغانستان در مونیخ؛ مراجعان از فساد و بینظمی شکایت دارند
