Merkel grapples with conservative rebellion over German migration policy

German Chancellor Angela Merkelfaced a rebellion over migrant policy on Tuesday that risks destabilizing her coalition, just as she is pushing EuropeanUnion partners to agree a common solution.

Merkel's handling of the migrant crisis which saw morethan 1.6 million people arrive in Germany, starting in 2014, and helped propel the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) intoparliament has come back to haunt her in the last few weeks.

On Tuesday, some senior members of Merkel's ChristianDemocrats (CDU) opted to back her hardline Interior Minister Horst Seehofer, a Bavarian conservative who has long been athorn in the chancellor's side over migration.

Seehofer had been due to announce a "migrant masterplan"under which Germany would turn away at its borders those asylumseekers who have already been registered in another European Union state.

However, Seehofer had to cancel Tuesday's presentation ofthe plan which envisages fully reversing an open-door policyMerkel announced in 2015 due to differences with his boss.

The alleged rape and killing of a 14-year-old German girl byan Iraqi man, who was extradited from Iraq on Saturday, hasreignited the debate on migrants and followed a scandal at aregional office which wrongly granted asylum applications.

'Migrant masterplan'

Seehofer, a former leader of the Bavarian Christian SocialUnion (CSU) which is facing a difficult regional election in October, wants to show he is toughening up the rules in his63-point master plan.

Merkel objects to turning away asylum seekers at the border,fearing it could lead other countries to do the same. She is also trying to persuade other EU leaders to agree a commonmigrant policy at a summit this month.

"It is important to have a sustainable solution, which iswhy I'd like to discuss this on a European level," she told reporters at a joint news conference alongside her Austriancounterpart Sebastian Kurz.

Slowly but surely, the realization is dawning on Europe that a European solution for the asylum crisis doesn't work- Alexander Gauland, AfD party

However, a new anti-establishment Italian government is alsovowing to turn away migrants it has already forced one ship todivert to Spain and it is unclear whether she will succeed.

Eastern European EU countries also object to aproposal under which migrants would be resettled around the bloc under a quota system.

Merkel's open-door policy for Germany has already beengradually scaled back and Christian Democrat General-SecretaryAnnegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, widely seen as a possible successorto Merkel, said the party's leadership supported her position.

Talks continuing

However, some other senior party members made clear theybacked Seehofer.

Michael Kretschmer, Saxony's state premier,told Die Weltdaily: "Of course, people who have no chance of getting asylumin Germany must be rejected at the border," adding that thisincludes people who had applied for asylum in other countries.

Merkel said talks aimed at reaching agreement withSeehofer's party would continue. The Social Democrats, the junior partner in Merkel's grand coalition, have largely leftthe two conservative parties to fight it out between themselves.

The anti-immigration AfD said Seehofer must prevail.

"Slowlybut surely, the realization is dawning on Europe that a Europeansolution for the asylum crisis doesn't work," said one of theparty's leaders, Alexander Gauland.

"Italy is going further than other states: migrants will notbe accepted in the ports any more. Other states will surely follow," he said in a statement.