Law enforcement in Europe

The government's new draft personal data protection law is highly problematic and open to abuse, according to Ak?n Ünver, an assistant professor at Kadir Has University and an executive and supervisory board member of the Center for Economics and Foreign Policy Studies (EDAM).

Europe's cherished free-travel zone will shut down unless Turkey acts to cut the number of migrants heading north through Greece by March 7, European Union officials said on Feb. 25.

Last year Bulgaria returned around 700 migrants who did not meet the requirements for being granted refugee status.

Following the drop in migrant flow to Bulgaria, the country has returned around forty migrants monthly.

The EU needs "tangible and clear results on the ground" in the next 10 days to find a solution to the migration crisis, Migration Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos said after a meeting of EU justice and home affairs ministers in Brussels on Thursday.

"Otherwise there is a danger, there is a risk that the whole system will completely break down," Avramopoulos told the media.

The Dutch ambassador to Sofia, Tom van Oorschot, reiterated the stance of his country that Bulgaria is not ready for accession to the Schengen Area.

The diplomat said this in an interview for private bTV station which was conducted while riding a bike in downtown Sofia.

Europol Director Rob Wainwright said “Islamic State” terrorists were planning new attacks on Europe, while speaking to the “Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel questioned the usefulness of the fence which is being built by FYROM on its border with Greece in an interview with German newspaper Stuttgarter Zeitung.

The European Commission has awarded EUR 12.7 M in emergency funding to Greece to support the establishment of reception facilities on the Greek mainland.

Germany is voicing disagreement with Central European EU member states which have suggested Bulgaria and Macedonia should get a stronger role in EU border protection.

EU member states on Friday gave Greece three months to remedy "serious deficiencies" in controlling the migrant influx or effectively face suspension from Europe's Schengen zone of passport-free travel, AFP reported.