Germany vows to block illegal immigrants claiming benefits in clampdown after Solingen stabbings
Olaf Scholz has vowed to block illegal migrants claiming benefits following Solingen
Getty/Reuters
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has vowed to block illegal migrants from claiming benefits in a fresh clampdown following a deadly mass stabbing in Solingen last week.
Scholz is said to be preparing new measures to tackle illegal migration, including cutting welfare payments for migrants previously registered in other EU countries.
Those who entered via another EU nation under the Dublin Convention will have their benefits revoked, provided the country of entry has agreed to take them back.
They will also only be provided with the “bed, bread and soap minimum” of a place to sleep, food and hygiene products.
Olaf Scholz has vowed to block illegal migrants claiming benefits following Solingen Getty/ReutersGermany is even poised to make it easier to expel migrants who commit crimes with weapons, as well as upping their efforts to challenge Islamist propaganda.
For over a decade, Germany has largely ignored the Dublin Convention - under which migrants are allowed to stay in the country where they first arrive in the bloc - and allowed migrants to file a second asylum application.
Following last week’s attack in Solingen, where a Syrian refugee killed three people with a knife at a festival, Scholz has been facing mounting pressure to clamp down on illegal migration.
Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it was carried out“to avenge Muslims in Palestine and everywhere”.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:
The stabbing happened while the city celebrated its 650th anniversary during a festivalGetty
Responding to the attack, German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said: “The Solingen attack has shocked us to the core.
“We always said the Government would respond to it with tough measures.
“I think we can present a proper package that responds appropriately to this terrible terrorist attack.”
Scholz’ Government will also “work intensively” to deport criminals and potential terrorists to Afghanistan and Syria.
Those who entered via another EU nation under the Dublin Convention will have their benefits revoked as long as the country of entry has agreed to take them back
Getty
At a press conference earlier this week, Scholz said: “We will have to do everything we can to ensure that those who cannot and are not allowed to stay in Germany are repatriated and deported."
“This was terrorism, terrorism against us all,” he added.
A 56-year-old woman and two men, aged 56 and 67, were killed by Issa Al H in the city of Solingen - some 25 kilometres from Dusseldorf.
The 26-year-old first arrived in Germany in 2022 after he was registered in Bulgaria, and had been on a deportation list for more than a year.