German front-runner vows permanent border controls after knife attack

The conservative opposition leader, who is expected to lead Germany after elections next month, has promised far-reaching changes to border and asylum rules after a group of children were targeted in a deadly knife attack in Bavaria.

Friedrich Merz effectively promised to close Germany's borders to all illegal immigrants, including those entitled to protection.

A two-year-old boy of Moroccan origin and a 41-year-old man were killed in the attack on Wednesday in Aschaffenburg, and several others were injured.

A 28-year-old Afghan man is scheduled to appear in court on Thursday on charges of murder and grievous harm.

The stabbing incident that occurred on Wednesday in Aschaffenburg is the latest in a series of violent and deadly attacks involving suspects who sought asylum in Germany.

Within hours, the stabbings sparked a tougher tone from Chancellor Olaf Scholz as well as Merz, the centre-right opposition leader.

Schulz promised quick action and called it an “act of terrorism” – although officials have not yet said they believe there is a terrorist motive.

Merz, whose Christian Democratic Party is leading in opinion polls ahead of the federal elections scheduled for February 23, refused to accept that the attacks that occurred in Mannheim last May, Solingen in August, and Magdeburg last month, would be the “new normal.”

The Afghan suspect in yesterday's attack arrived in Germany in 2022 and was linked to three previous acts of violence, according to officials in the state of Bavaria. He agreed to leave Germany last month, but is still receiving psychological treatment and living in refugee housing.

The investigating judge will decide whether he should be remanded in custody or temporarily placed in a psychiatric hospital.

Merz said that on his first day as chancellor, he would issue instructions to the Interior Ministry to permanently control Germany's borders.

“We see before us the ruins of ten years of Germany's wrong asylum and immigration policy,” he said. “We have reached our limit.”

Under his party colleague Angela Merkel, Germany received more than a million refugees during the migrant crisis in Europe in 2015-2016.

He criticized EU asylum rules as “clearly dysfunctional” and said Germany must now “exercise its right to the national rule of law.”

Germany has already reimposed checks at its borders to combat illegal migration, which are temporarily allowed under the EU's Schengen border exit rules as a “last resort” measure, but not on a permanent basis.

Merz also said it's time to dramatically increase the number of places available for pre-deportation detention.

Merz's promise to close the border to illegal entry on day one at the Chancellery in Berlin has a Trumpian feel to it.

The American president has It pushed through a flurry of executive orders and actions to tackle illegal immigration since his return to the White House this week.

In Germany, both the center-left Chancellor and Merz are aware that the far-right Alternative for Germany party, which has consistently finished second, has made immigration a major issue.

The leader of the Alternative for Germany party, Alice Weidel, called for a vote in the German parliament next week on closing Germany's borders and returning illegal immigrants. “The knife terror in Aschaffenburg must now have consequences,” she said on social media.

Some critics will argue that Schultz and Merz's move to take a tougher stance now comes too late. Others will argue that a shift to the right by the main parties could simply strengthen the AfD's arguments.

In any case, German policy is not suitable for a set of first-day presidential-style decrees, given the necessity of forming coalitions with other parties.

Liberal FDP leader Christian Lindner said Merz would not be able to introduce such changes if he entered into a coalition with the Social Democrats or the Green Party.

“Some people are now making largely fact-free arguments in campaign mode,” noted Nancy Wieser, Interior Minister and Olaf Scholz's party colleague.

“I can only warn very clearly against exploiting such a terrible act for the benefit of populism, which only benefits right-wing populists with their contempt for humanity,” she said.

The 41-year-old man killed in a knife attack on Wednesday has been praised for apparently helping a kindergarten group and saving the lives of other children.

Another two-year-old girl of Syrian origin was injured with a knife in her neck.

A 72-year-old man suffered serious stab wounds, and a kindergarten teacher suffered a broken arm.