HUNGARY CLOSES BORDER WITH CROATIA

Hungary has closed its border with Croatia in an effort to stem the flow of migrants through the country en route to western Europe. Croatia said it would begin directing migrants to Slovenia instead. Hungary has been a major transit country for migrants, many of whom aim to continue on to Austria and Germany. It announced the closure on Friday after EU leaders failed to agree a plan backed by Hungary to send a force to prevent migrants reaching Greece. The border, reinforced with a razor-wire fence, closed at midnight (22:00 GMT) on Friday. "We know that this is not the best, but only the second-best solution," Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said, announcing the closure earlier. Migrants could still apply for asylum in Hungary at two border transit zones, he added. Hungary has already sealed its border with Serbia. SOURCE : http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-34556682

AUSTRIA : EXIT POLLS SUGGEST THE RIGHT-WING FREEDOM PARTY HAS DOUBLED ITS VOTE IN A REGIONAL ELECTION (31%)

Exit polls suggest the far-right FPO have doubled their vote in regional elections in Upper Austria. Preliminary results indicate the party got more than 31 percent support, compared to 15 in 2009. For party leader Hans-Christian Strache, the result has come as a surprise: “This result has surpassed our most optimistic expectations. It shows overwhelming confidence and overwhelming encouragement.” It is not enough to put the FPO in the lead, however. The conservative Christian Democrats are in front on 39.5 percent. Analysts think fears over the migrant crisis have shaped voting patterns in the state, the fourth biggest in Austria. Austria has become a main transit country for refugees and migrants heading from the Balkans to northern Europe. Vienna expects 80,000 asylum applications this year, proportionally high compared to other EU member states. SOURCE : http://www.euronews.com/2015/09/27/austria-exit-polls-suggest-the-far-right-fpo-has-doubled-its-vote-in-a-regional/

AUSTRIA : MIGRANT INFLUX BOOSTS RIGHT-WING PARTY IN KEY AUSTRIAN ELECTION

Just a few days after more than 100,000 people turned out in Vienna to support refugees, an anti-refugee party is poised to land a huge coup - a win at the polls that could see them take control of the Austrian capital Vienna. Freedom Party leader Heinz-Christian Strache has toned down his anti-immigrant rhetoric ahead of the Vienna vote in an attempt to win over critics.

(Mr Heinz-Christian Strache, leader of right-wing Austrian Freedom Party speaks with supporters ahead of the local elections at the Stephansplatz on Oct 8, 2015 in Vienna.)

MICHAEL FASSBENDER AS MACBETH 2015

CZECHS PROPOSE CENTRAL EUROPEAN ACTION TO PROTECT HUNGARIAN BORDER

PRAGUE (Reuters) - The Czech government has proposed that three central European states (Czech, Poland, Slovakia) send hundreds of troops and police to help protect Hungary's borders against a migrant influx into Europe's Schengen passport-free travel zone, officials said on Friday. The central Europeans have stressed the need to secure the European Union's outer borders as the basis of any response to the inflow of hundreds of thousands of refugees this year. Hungary's position is seen as pivotal as it forms the external boundary of the EU's Schengen passport-free travel zone. "Our government is prepared to help Hungary with protection of the Schengen border. We are proposing joint V4 action," Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka said on his Twitter page, referring to the Visegrad 4 group that compromises his country, Slovakia, Poland and Hungary. Sobotka said their interior ministers would meet on Oct. 8 to tackle the idea. Czech news agency CTK quoted Interior Minister Milan Chovanec as saying the plans could include sending hundreds of Czech, Polish and Slovak soldiers and police officers to help patrol Hungary's southern border for several months. Hungary has drawn criticism from larger western EU countries and rights groups for measures it has taken to keep out migrants. It has built a high border fence facing non-EU member Serbia to the south and is racing to complete another one along its frontier with Croatia, an EU member but outside Schengen. The Visegrad 4 have been in the spotlight over their strong resistance to mandatory national quotas to share out 120,000 asylum seekers among the EU's 28 member states, approved by a majority vote of the bloc's interior ministers last month. Poland endorsed the measure but the Czechs, Slovaks and Hungarians continue to oppose quotas, saying it is better to focus on finding a solution to Syria's war, helping neighboring countries and protecting external EU borders. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has said the influx of refugees into Europe threatens to undermine the continent's Christian roots and that governments must control their borders before they can decide how many asylum seekers to take. Hungary has been the most affected in central Europe by the migration wave, with 280,000 people entering its territory so far this year, although nearly all have sought just to pass on through to wealthier countries of the western EU. The other Visegrad nations have seen only a fraction of those numbers.

(demo in Slovakia against immigration)

RUSSIA BEGINS AIR STRIKES IN SYRIA

The Russian air force began air strikes in Syria on Wednesday. SOURCE : http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-34419003

HUNGARY WARNS OF INSTABILITY FROM EUROPE'S REFUGEE CRISIS

Hungary’s prime minister has warned that the massive influx of refugees from the Middle East and Afghanistan risks destabilizing the European Union unless the continent adopts a tough stance on the crisis.