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Thousands enter Slovenia after Hungary seals off border

Croatia will now start sending migrants to its border with Slovenia, another European Union country in the Schengen zone, which also shares borders with Hungary and Austria.

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However, the prime minister reiterated Ljubljana’s position that if Germany or Austria closed their borders, “Slovenia will follow suit”.

Thousands of migrants are stranded in fog and cold weather in Serbia and Croatia after Hungary closed its border with Croatia and the flow of people was redirected to a route via Slovenia.

“It will be a lot of trouble for all countries and I can not predict what will happen in this situation”, Ostojic, speaking in English, told reporters at a migrant camp in the eastern Croatian village of Opatovac.

The United Nations agency estimates that Slovenia has the capacity to accept around 7,000 migrants a day.

Following the border closure, the number of refugees entering Hungary reduced to 870, down from 6,353 the previous day.

A new border has been erected on the border with Croatia.

The Croatian government has said it will continue to ferry migrants across the country by bus and train as long as Slovenia and Germany kept their borders open.

The daily arrival of thousands of refugees and migrants is putting a severe strain on Croatia and Slovenia.

Extra police officers have been sent to the Slovenia-Croatia border.

Slovenian police said the bus had arrived at a border crossing from Croatia and that the passengers would be registered.

Slovenia says it can’t accept 5,000 migrants per day as asked by Croatia, which is likely to cause a further backlog in the flow of people hoping to reach Western Europe.

While Germany can control its borders, it cannot close them completely, Chancellor Angela Merkel told the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung” newspaper.

European leaders have been trying to develop a co-ordinated response to the ongoing migrant crisis, including extra assistance to those countries most affected.

A train carrying about 1,200 migrants arrived at the Sredisce ob Dravi crossing. The country clamped down at its border with Serbia with a similar razor-wire fence on September 15 and since then migrants have been taking a detour through Croatia to reach Hungary.

It has also proposed giving Turkey three billion euros ($3.4 billion) in aid and the prospect of easier travel visas and “re-energized” talks on joining the bloc if it helps stem the flow across its territory.

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An independent candidate running for mayor of the German city of Cologne was stabbed in the neck and severely wounded over the weekend in an attack that police said appeared to be motivated by her support for refugees.

Migrants walk to the border with Hungary