Germany has suspended admissions of refugees via a UN resettlement programme, the interior ministry said on Tuesday, as a new coalition government that is expected to tighten immigration rules prepares to take office.
Migration has been a contentious issue in coalition negotiations between Friedrich Merz's conservative CDU/CSU bloc and the centre-left Social Democrats, which are expected to conclude within weeks.
The conservatives are advocating a stricter approach to asylum seekers in response to rising support for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party and several violent incidents involving refugees.
The two sides have struck a preliminary agreement to end voluntary federal admission programmes for refugees such as the U.N. programme - the only one currently active - and not to launch any new ones, according to a document seen by Reuters.
Germany has participated since 2016 in a European Union resettlement scheme that accepts refugees selected by the U.N. refugee agency, UNHCR. Most come from Turkey, Egypt, Jordan or Kenya, or from Libya via Rwanda.
The ministry said 4,711 people had arrived in Germany through the programme since 2024, out of the 13,000 refugees that Germany has promised the European Commission it will take in for 2024 and 2025 combined.
Despite the suspension, admissions that are already well advanced, with concrete commitments, will go ahead, a ministry spokesperson said.
A South Korean court sentenced former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo to 23 years in jail on Wednesday for charges including engaging in a key action of i...
A Japanese court sentenced 45-year-old Tetsuya Yamagami to life imprisonment for fatally shooting former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, public broadcaster...
Türkiye is closely monitoring developments in Syria and considers the country’s unity and territorial integrity vital for regional stability, Presi...
Azerbaijan said on on Wednesday that it had accepted an invitation from U.S. President Donald Trump to join his 'Board of Peace' for Gaza....
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief: here are the top news stories for the 21st of January, covering the latest developments you need to ...
A South Korean court sentenced former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo to 23 years in jail on Wednesday for charges including engaging in a key action of insurrection concerning ex-President Yoon Suk Yeol's declaration of martial law in December 2024.
Türkiye is closely monitoring developments in Syria and considers the country’s unity and territorial integrity vital for regional stability, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told President Donald Trump during a phone call on Tuesday, according to Türkiye’s Communications Directorate.
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief: here are the top news stories for the 21st of January, covering the latest developments you need to know.
The world has already entered an era of global water bankruptcy, with irreversible damage to rivers, aquifers, lakes and glaciers pushing billions of people into long-term water insecurity, according to a major United Nations report released on Tuesday.
Italian fashion designer Valentino Garavani has died at the age of 93, his foundation said on Monday.
More than 100 vehicles were involved in a massive pileup on Interstate 96 in western Michigan on Monday (19 January), forcing the highway to shut in both directions amid severe winter weather.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he would impose a 200% tariff on French wines and champagnes after France declined to join his proposed Board of Peace on Gaza initiative.
Syria's Interior Ministry said on Tuesday that about 120 Islamic State detainees escaped from Shaddadi prison, after the Kurdish website Rudaw reported that a spokesperson for the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, Farhad Shami, said around 1,500 Islamic State members had escaped.
The German and French finance ministers said on Monday that European powers would not be blackmailed and that there would be a clear and united response to U.S. President Donald Trump's threats of higher tariffs over Greenland.
A South Korean court sentenced former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo to 23 years in jail on Wednesday for charges including engaging in a key action of insurrection concerning ex-President Yoon Suk Yeol's declaration of martial law in December 2024.
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief: here are the top news stories for the 21st of January, covering the latest developments you need to know.
A Japanese court sentenced 45-year-old Tetsuya Yamagami to life imprisonment for fatally shooting former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, public broadcaster NHK reported. The ruling on Wednesday (21 January) brings to an end a three-and-a-half-year case that has stunned the nation.
A Russian air attack cut power to more than one million Kyiv residents and impacted substations carrying power from Ukraine's atomic plants on Tuesday.
A commuter train derailed on Tuesday after a containment wall fell on the track due to heavy rain near the Spanish city of Barcelona, killing the driver and seriously injuring passengers, a fire brigade official said.
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