German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser is set to announce temporary border controls at all of the country’s land borders on Monday. The measures are aimed at curbing irregular migration and protecting the public from Islamist extremism, according to a government source speaking to Reuters.
Faeser was scheduled to hold a press conference at 4:30 p.m. to detail the security measures and will also inform the European Commission about the plans. The decision comes after consultations with the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) following a deadly knife attack by a Syrian-born asylum seeker in Solingen last month.
The anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD) party recently won an election in Thuringia and placed second in Saxony. Minister Faeser’s Social Democrats are gearing up for elections in Brandenburg in two weeks.
Germany shares borders with several countries like Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Switzerland, totaling 3,700 kilometers. Last year, Berlin implemented stricter controls at its borders with Poland, the Czech Republic, and Switzerland due to an increase in asylum applications.
