Germany's Federal Interior Minister, Nancy Faeser, has announced temporary border controls in an effort to combat irregular migration and security threats. The government is also developing a model for EU-compliant pushbacks at German borders.
The push for increased pushbacks has gained support from SPD parliamentary vice-president Wiese and Bavaria's Prime Minister Söder, who calls for a significant reduction in immigration. In response to the recent attack in Solingen, the federal government has presented a security package, although Söder criticizes the proposed hospital reform.
The temporary border controls will be in effect for six months, and since October, over 30,000 people have already been turned away at the borders. This move follows the far-right gains in state elections in Thuringia and Saxony, with an upcoming vote in Brandenburg where the Social Democrats govern.
However, Austria has declared that it will not accept any refugees or immigrants turned away by Germany at the border. As discussions on migration continue, the Bundespolizei supports stricter measures, including pushbacks, while criticizing the government's past failures and calling for increased investment in personnel and technology.
Meanwhile, protests against the construction of fences at Görlitzer Park have been condemned by Berlin's Innensenatorin and Polizeipräsidentin, with the district of Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg taking legal action against the Senate's plans to close the park at night to combat drug-related crime and conflicts.
