A Rome court on Friday ordered a group of migrants detained in camps built in Albania to be transferred to Italy, sources said, dealing a fresh blow to a plan by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to curb irregular sea arrivals.

The sweat was dripping off Friedrich Merz after the frontrunner to become Germany’s next chancellor saw his bid to outflank an ascendant far right spectacularly backfire in the Bundestag.

On Wednesday, Merz pushed through a non-binding motion in favour of an immigration crackdown with support from the AfD, breaking with Germany’s tradition of consensus-driven, centrist politics. Many fear it will only further embolden the far right.

Friedrich Merz, hitherto favourite to become Germany's next chancellor, suffered a blow three weeks before a national election on Friday when 12 of his own legislators refused to support him in backing a migration bill that thereby failed to pass in parliament.

Friedrich Merz, the front-runner to become Germany’s next chancellor, relied on votes from the far-right AfD to push an anti-migration motion through parliament.

German opposition leader and Christian Union parties floor leader Friedrich Merz speaks after the debate and a voting about migration at the German parliament Bundestag.

Despite the defeat on Friday in the German parliament of his proposed immigration law, conservative leader Friedrich Merz sees himself and his faction in a stronger position. "I also see myself very much strengthened by what we in the faction decided this week,

Germany's conservative opposition leader Friedrich Merz, frontrunner in polls to become the next chancellor, on Tuesday urged a united European stance in talks with US President Donald Trump. Merz also said Germany needed to get Poland "at the table as fast as possible" and praised Meloni of the post-fascist Brothers of Italy party,

The CDU party chief, who leads in the polls to become the next chancellor, said he would collect votes from all parties to push his five-point migration plan through parliament despite Chancellor Olaf Scholz's strong opposition.

Germany's election frontrunner says Europeans are waiting for Germany to take the lead on dealing with the new American president.

Germany's conservative opposition leader Friedrich Merz faced sharp criticism on Tuesday for flirting with the far-right AfD party ahead of the Feb. 23 parliamentary elections. Chancellor Olaf ...

Friedrich Merz and his Christian Democrats broke a political taboo by working with the hard-right Alternative for Germany to toughen rules on immigration. It did not pay off.