A terminally-ill Afghan boy has been removed from his parents’ care at a refugee centre in Emmen and put under social work supervision, the Volkskrant said on Thursday.

Amir, who is 10, suffers from an incurable metabolic disease and is mentally handicapped. He has been living in refugee centres since 2011 and his family was given compassionate leave to remain in the Netherlands last year.

Child protection officers have now gone to court to have the boy placed under their supervision because of ‘serious concerns’ about his health situation, the paper said.

Judges in Assen said on Thursday he should remain in care for at least the coming month. They also recommended that social workers develop a more intense visiting schedule for his parents, who, their lawyer Joancy Breevled told the paper, have only seen the boy twice in the two weeks since he was taken away.

Children are only removed from their parents in extreme circumstances and officials have not given any more information about their concerns, the paper said.

This is an extreme measure which is severely damaging to a boy in the last phase of his life, Breeveld said. ‘He should be with his family who understand his non-verbal signals and care for him with great love and devotion.’