Bavarian leader Horst Seehofer has said Germany should introduce border checks to block refugees coming from Italy.
"Italy is in clear violation of the Schengen [border-free area] accords. If this doesn't stop, Germany has to seriously consider stopping this violation via border controls," he told the mass-selling tabloid, Bild, on Monday (8 September).
"We have to make sure that refugees are divided justly in Europe," he added.
Seehofer, who is governor of the south-east German region of Bavaria, said most refugees coming by train arrive from Italy via Austria. He said under EU rules, refugees need to apply for asylum in the first EU country in which they set foot.
