Germany’s parliament voted after a heated debate Thursday to resume family reunions for temporary refugees from mid-year but sharply restrict the number of relatives arriving at 1,000 a month.
Interior Minister Thomas de Maiziere defended the law, which passed by a margin of 376 against 298, as “a compromise between humanity and responsibility... between generosity and realism”.
The measure was agreed Tuesday in ongoing coalition talks between Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservative camp and the Social Democrats, in the hope of launching a new joint government by late March.