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BERLIN A stunning election win for Angela Merkel's conservatives in Germany's most populous state is the strongest sign yet that voters have forgiven the chancellor for her open-door migrant policy and are set to hand her four more years in power.

Sunday's triumph in North Rhine-Westphalia marked the third regional election win this year for Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU), providing them with powerful momentum as they head into a federal election on Sept. 24.

The win reflected directly on the chancellor, who had placed herself at the center of campaigning in a state that has traditionally been a stronghold of her Social Democrat (SPD) rivals.

It dealt a huge blow to new SPD leader Martin Schulz, who in February and March had boosted the party's poll ratings and raised its hopes of ending Merkel's 12 years in power.

Images of smiling senior conservatives piling into CDU headquarters are a far cry from last year's headshaking, when poll ratings sagged and some allies even spoke of the end of the Merkel era.

"Merkel has risen from the ashes of 2016 when she was widely criticized for her open-arms policy on the refugees," said Josef Joffe, publisher of Die Zeit weekly.

He argued that she was benefiting from a slowing of the migrant influx to about 280,000 last year from almost 900,000 in 2015. That is due to neighboring countries closing borders, an EU deal with Turkey to stem the flow, and some domestic action.

Acknowledging voters' fears, Merkel's grand coalition of conservatives and the SPD has tried to speed up the processing of asylum requests, stepped up deportations and banned the burqa full face veil for state employees at work.

"All seems forgiven. I have no doubt that her party will come out as the strongest in September, that she will gain a fourth term.... So four more years," Joffe told Reuters.

Bild daily wrote that voters had rewarded local politicians who had shown they backed Merkel, and provided "something to think about" for those in the CDU who had called for her head.

GLOBAL STANDING

As the migrant crisis has receded in voters' minds, and the right-wing, anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD) has descended into infighting, Merkel has regained her role as an anchor of stability, especially amid fears of rising populism.

Under her leadership, Europe's biggest economy is growing steadily and unemployment is at a record low. Television footage of U.S. President Donald Trump praising Germany's apprenticeship system, and talk of her budding friendship with his daughter Ivanka, remind cautious Germans of Merkel's global stature.

In office since 2005, she is routinely rated by Forbes as the world's most powerful woman, and wields unparalleled clout in the European Union at a time when it is trying to map out a new direction after Britain's vote to leave.

"Angela Merkel is a cart horse for her party, the likes of which the SPD clearly doesn't have," wrote the conservative Frankfurter Allgemeine daily in an editorial.

An unexpectedly strong result for the conservatives' preferred partner, the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP), in NRW means an alliance of the two may take power there.

That could boost the FDP's hopes of forming a coalition with Merkel at national level after September's election, as they did during her second term from 2009 to 2013. But despite the boost to sentiment, FDP leader Christian Lindner said his party would not compromise on substance to share power, either in NRW or nationally.

SPD DISASTER

Merkel's state election gains, especially in NRW, are at least in equal measure the SPD's losses: on Monday, Bild daily dubbed the much-feted "Schulz effect" the "Schulz curse".

Of the roughly 10-point gain in opinion polls that the party had initially seen under Schulz, about half has vanished, and it trails the conservatives by at least 7-8 points in most polls. Most analysts expect another grand coalition after the election, led by Merkel.

The SPD, which has tried to blame its loss on local factors like infrastructure problems and crime, slumped to its lowest level of support in NRW since 1947.

Many analysts say Schulz's focus on social justice, including plans to extend long-term unemployment benefit, is not enough. Politics professor Karl-Rudolf Korte from the University of Duisburg-Essen said the SPD needed a new start quickly if it was to have any chance of winning.

"They need to develop ideas for the future that ignite enthusiasm and mobilize voters, not just on social justice."

Schulz, who said the NRW result was a bitter personal setback, on Monday pinpointed investment, innovation, education and a strong Europe as areas to focus on.

But analysts say security is also a weakness for the SPD. The party was punished in NRW for its handling of the mass groping of women in Cologne on New Year's Eve 2015. And the Tunisian man who rammed a truck into Berlin's Christmas market last year, killing 12 people, had links to NRW.

Compounding the SPD's problems, pollsters say, is voter concern about the prospect of a leftist coalition on the federal level between the SPD, Greens and radical Left party.

SPD leaders are banking on another bounce. Some commentators pointed to the 2005 federal election, called by SPD chancellor Gerhard Schroeder after losing NRW, where Merkel squandered a hefty poll lead to win by just a whisker.

"It will be a long, bumpy path," said Schulz to his dejected supporters on Monday.

(Editing by Mark Trevelyan)

BERLIN/WASHINGTON Last month, in a phone conversation between Donald Trump and Angela Merkel, the U.S. president shared his views on Turkish leader Tayyip Erdogan.

BAGHDAD Iraqi forces have reduced the area of Mosul controlled by Islamic State to 12 square km, military spokesman Brigadier General Yahya Rasool told a news conference on Tuesday.

BANGKOK Thailand has no immediate plan to block access to Facebook , the telecoms regulator said on Tuesday, as it expects the social media giant to comply with court orders for the removal of content deemed to threaten national security.

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Forgiven for migrant crisis, Merkel in pole position for fourth term - Reuters

Rome:An Italian prosecutor is investigating some members of humanitarian organisations rescuing migrants in the Mediterranean Sea on suspicion they may have cooperated with people smugglers.

AmbrogioCartosio, chief prosecutor of the western Sicilian city ofTrapani, told a parliamentary committee in Rome on Wednesday that the organisations themselves were not a target of the inquiry.

Suspicions arose because some rescue crew seemed to know in advance where to find the flimsy boats crowded with migrants after smugglers sent them off from north African ports, he said.

Migrant arrivals to Italy by sea are up almost 40 per cent this year over the same period in 2016, and more than a half-million people have come in the past three years. Some Italian politicians have begun saying the non-governmental organisations (NGOs) run a "taxi" service bringing migrants to Italy.

"We understand that NGOs made some rescues at sea without informing the Coast Guard,"Cartosiosaid. Italy's Coast Guard is in charge of coordinating all rescues in international waters off the shores of Libya.

The prosecutor gave no further details. By law, information regarding ongoing probes must be kept secret. Aid groups have strongly denied any ties to human traffickers.

NGO boats operating off the coast of Libya have come in for criticism in Italy in recent months after the prosecutor in Catania, on Sicily's east coast, opened a fact-finding probe into possible ties between NGOs and Libya-based traffickers.

Catania prosecutorCarmeloZuccarohas not opened a criminal probe because he says he has no evidence of actual collusion between human traffickers and rescue boat crews, although he does maintain the two sides have been in telephone contact.

But political parties including 5-Star Movement - Italy's most popular according to polls - have seized onZuccaro'scomments as proof of an NGO "taxi" service for migrants.

Cartosiosaid he had no evidence of phone contacts between NGOs and smugglers or of payments by traffickers to NGOs, another accusationZuccarois looking into.

"I agree 100 per cent with the work of the NGOs, even if their work saves only one human life,"Cartosiosaid.

News of the investigation comes asLibyancoastguard turned a woodenboat with nearly 500 migrantson board back to Tripoliafter warning off a NGO ship.

Footage filmed by Sea-Watch, a non-governmental organisation, showed a Libyan coastguard vessel coming within metres of its own ship as it sped to stop the migrants.

Tripoli coastguard spokesmanAyoubQassemaccused the NGO og hindering the coastguard's work.

"An international rescue organisation called Sea-Watch tried to hinder the work of our coastguard ... in a bid to take the migrants, claiming Libya is not safe for migrants," he said.

Qassemsaid the coastguard had also exchanged fire with smugglers, but gave no details.

RubenNeugebauer, a spokesman for Sea-Watch, said the NGO had received instruction from Italy's coastguard control centre in Rome that the Libyan coastguard would be taking over "on-scene command", and that the Sea-Watch ship had stopped to await further instructions.

"Without any warning, they crossed our bow on the way to the migrant boat,"Neugebauersaid. "They made an extremely dangerous manoeuvre. They nearly hit our boat, they endangered our crew."

Libya is the main departure point for migrants hoping to reach Europe by sea. The country has been in turmoil for years and migrants living there or passing through say they are subject to a range of abuses.

Separately, Italian police in the southern city of Bari said on Wednesday they arrested five people who allegedly organised passage to other European countries for African migrants rescued in the Mediterranean. Police are still hunting for 10 others.

Reuters

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Migrant crisis: Italy investigates rescue workers while Libya turns back boat - The Sydney Morning Herald

Europe

18:02 11.05.2017(updated 18:07 11.05.2017) Get short URL

STOCKHOLM (Sputnik) Earlier inthe day, the Council ofthe European Union allowed Austria, Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Norway toextend their internal border checks bysix months.

"I have no doubt that border control measures, alongsidetightening ofimmigration policy implemented bythe government, have a preventive impact onthe flow ofmigrants, which still stands atlow and therefore manageable level," Integration Minister Inger Stojberg was quoted assaying inthe press release.

Amid a major influx ofmigrants toEurope, the number ofindividuals who applied forasylum inDenmark in2015 exceeded 21,000. In response tothe migrant crisis, Denmark, aswell assome other EU countries, toughened its migration laws and temporarily reinstated border controls.

REUTERS/ Asger Ladefoged/Scanpix Denmark/Files

Europe has faced an unprecedented influx ofundocumented migrants fromthe Middle East and North Africa, fleeing their home countries toescape violence and poverty. Many migrants arrive bysea tothe shores ofmaritime states and try tomove further towealthier European countries, such asthe United Kingdom, Germany and Sweden.

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Migrant Crisis: Denmark Prolongs Control Measures on Border With ... - Sputnik International

BBC News

Migrant crisis: UN says 250 missing in shipwrecks BBC News The central Mediterranean route for illegal migration to Europe is currently the busiest. It is also one of the most deadly, the UN says. "Since the beginning of 2017, one person out of 35 has died on the sea journey from Libya to Italy," UN High ... and more »

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Migrant crisis: UN says 250 missing in shipwrecks - BBC News

Europe

19:08 09.05.2017 Get short URL

Following a conference inThessaloniki, Greece, May 8, onthe need for "a truly European solution tothe refugee crisis based onthe principle ofrespect forfundamental human rights," the president ofthe Global Progressive Forum, Socialists and Democrats, Enrique Guerrero Salom, said EU members had a duty toengage toresolve the crisis byworking together.

"Our duty is topromote a common progressive approach tothe refugee and migration crisis based onrespect forhuman rights and solidarity betweenEU institutions and member states. I express my gratitude tothe Greek people and authorities fortheir efforts and democratic approach tothis humanitarian crisis," said Salom.

"EU member states must now take uptheir responsibilities ina spirit ofsolidarity foraccelerated and steady relocation fromGreece and Italy. We must urgently find solutions especially interms ofrelocation and integration," he said.

"With a budget ofUS$272 million, this year our focus is ontwo key objectives: tomove refugees fromcamps torented accommodation and tomove away fromcatering toa cash system and communal kitchen facilities," European Commissioner forhumanitarian aid and crisis management Christos Stylianidis said.

"Our commitment is tocontinue helping the Greek authorities intheir response tothe refugee crisis. We will continue toprovide our assistance tothose who need it most, ina neutral and impartial way," he said.

"We express our solidarity withthe Greek citizens, withthe local and regional authorities, withthe efforts ofthe Greek government. But we must push forrelocation tocontinue, forthe Dublin regulation totake intoaccount the realities ofthe present circumstances and foran initiative tolower tensions withTurkey. The precious agreement gives us time tobreathe, butwe must use this time wisely," said Socialist and Democrat (S&D) MEP Miltos Kyrkos.

The Commission, 2015, promoted the controversial scheme torelocate 160,000 fromItaly and Greece torelieve pressure onboth countries, butthe scheme has so far only relocated a little over16,000 just ten percent ofthe original target, which itself was reduced to98,255.

Disagreements

There are two relocation plans onthe EU agenda: the Greece-Italy relocations designed totake the weight offthose two counties and redistribute refugees acrossEU member states according toa mandatory quota system and the EU-Turkey deal torelocate "irregular migrants" (those refused asylum) back toTurkey inreturn ona one-for-one basis forSyrian refugees inTurkey being relocated aroundEU member states.

REUTERS/ Michalis Karagiannis

However, according tothe Commission, so far only 18,119 have been relocated underthe relocation scheme (as atMay 9, 2017). The Commission has threatened topunish any member state that still refuses toallocate spaces forrefugees bySeptember 2017 two years afterthe original agreement was made.

"Today we had an excellent discussion onthe safety ofour borders and the integration ofthe refugees " Our priority is toprotect the children, especially the unaccompanied ones, while maintaining a balance inour priorities and supporting the Greek and European people living inextreme poverty, sincecountries likeGreece and Italy have been guarding the borders formany years and the resulting cost ofthe migration crisis is unbearable. We need toexchange best practices and form a holistic strategy toface the crisis," said S&D MEP Eva Kaili.

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MEPs Call for Solidarity, 'Urgent Solution' Over Migrant Crisis - Sputnik International