"They will accept it": Söder believes in the neighbors' approval in the asylum dispute

On the orders of Interior Minister Dobrindt, the Federal Police are turning back asylum seekers at the German border. Bavaria's Minister-President is confident that Germany's direct neighbors will accept the new practice. Söder announces further measures.

CSU leader Markus Söder says he doesn't expect any resistance from Germany's neighboring countries to the tightened controls and rejections at the borders. "I am convinced that our European neighbors will ultimately accept this," the Bavarian Minister-President told "Bild am Sonntag." "We will now continue to discuss details with our partners as quickly as possible."

Söder announced further measures against illegal immigration. "This is a powerful start, but there's more to come. In addition to changing citizenship law, flights from Afghanistan will be stopped. Deportations will be intensified by the expulsion and expansion of safe countries of origin," Söder said. This will deter people from making their way to Germany and motivate others to leave again.

Police: 365 illegal entries in two days

As "Bild am Sonntag" reported, citing an initial assessment available to it, 19 refugees were turned back at the German border on Thursday and Friday following Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt's decision, despite having applied for asylum. On both days, the Federal Police recorded 365 unauthorized entries. A total of 286 migrants were turned back. The main reasons were the lack of visas or other documents, forged documents, or entry bans. In addition, 14 smugglers were arrested, 48 outstanding arrest warrants were executed, and nine individuals from the extremist or Islamist spectrum were caught entering the country.

Since the middle of the week, the Federal Police have been implementing Dobrindt's directive to reject asylum seekers at border controls. "Our colleagues will reject all asylum seekers and those seeking protection, except pregnant women, sick people, and unaccompanied minors," Andreas Roßkopf, head of the German Police Union (GdP), told the "Bild" newspaper. The Federal Minister of the Interior's directive is "binding for border officials." Legal responsibility for the measures lies "solely with the Federal Ministry of the Interior."