The German government says a dip in the number of people seeking asylum is proof that its strict migration policies are working.
According to figures, the number of people applying for asylum in Germany for the first time fell by more than half in the first six months of the year.
There were just over 70,000 applications between January and July, compared to nearly 141,000 during the same period last year.
Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said: 'We have massively reduced the number of initial asylum applications compared to last year.'
The drop has been seen as a big success for Chancellor Friedrich Merz's conservative government, which promised to crack down on illegal immigration and speed up deportations.
