German leader hardens on deportations amid row with far right as EU election looms

Chancellor says violent, foreign-born criminals, even from Syria and Afghanistan, may be forced to leave

The German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, has told parliament he backs the deportation of violent, foreign-born criminals even if they come from Syria or Afghanistan, as he signalled a more hardline stance three days before Germans vote in European elections.

In a heated debate days after an Afghan asylum seeker allegedly killed a police officer at a far-right rally, Scholz responded on Thursday to accusations by the conservative opposition and the far-right Alternative fur Deutschland (AfD) that his government was lax on deportations.