EU border rules in chaos over refugees

The EU and its asylum and border rules were descending into chaos last night, increasing pressure on poorer states outside the union, including Serbia.

The head of the UN’s refugee agency, António Guterres, warned that “Europe is facing a moment of truth — either they unite to deal with this or become irrelevant”.

Hungary has locked its border with Serbia, through which about 190,000 refugees have crossed so far this year. It has refused asylum requests, which led to large groups, including Syrians, camping out overnight at the fence topped with razor wire.