The public prosecutor's office filed a request to remove the Left Party's Diether Dehm's immunity as a federal parliamentarian, German newspaper "tageszeitung" (TAZ) reported on Monday.

Authorities accused him of facilitating the illegal entry of an African migrant in August, which prosecutors say is ground enough to remove his legal protection.

Earlier this month, Dehm confirmed that he had taken a young African refugee first to stay in his holiday home on Italy's Lake Maggiore. He then transported the boy through Switzerland to Germany, where he was reunited with his father.

The 66-year-old leftist politician told German daily "Bild" that the boy had not registered with border officials upon entering.

"I was at peace with myself, and I still am now," Dehm said.

Dehm appointed Paul Gauweiler, a conservative former MP of Bavaria's Christian Social Union (CSU), as his legal representative. He described Gauweiler as a "good friend and blood brother."

The Left Party has previously been targeted by federal authorities, including the Office for the Protection of the Constitution, Germany's domestic spy agency.

In 2012, business newspaper "Handelsblatt" reported that more than one-third of the Left Party's MPs had been under surveillance for suspected extremist views, an allegation the party denies.

A Syrian family's escape to Germany Happy in Aleppo The Kotos in 2006: Khalil, his wife Hamida and the children Mannan, Dolovan, Ayaz and Nervana. Back then, there was no civil war, no destruction, no hardship - and the family never thought they would one day have to flee Syria.

A Syrian family's escape to Germany Determined to leave At the start of the civil war in Syria in 2011, Khalil Koto headed a branch of the country's Energy Ministry in his hometown Afrin in northwestern Syria. The electrical engineer soon lost his job, there was a shortage of water and food, and in April 2014, the situation was so dire that the family decided to flee to Turkey, where Khalil's mother lived.

A Syrian family's escape to Germany Step by step Khalil couldn't find work in Turkey, so in July 2014, the family agreed to move on to Germany. The fact that Khalil's brother already lived in Europe helped the family make the decision. The spoon, above, is a reminder of the six months the Kotos spent in Bulgarian refugee camps.

A Syrian family's escape to Germany Welcome to Germany Finally in Germany, the family was granted asylum in the northern city of Bremen. A woman there gave Khalil this pair of jeans, the refugee's first piece of clothing in Germany. That same year, the family was eventually housed in the port city of Bremerhaven, about 50 kilometers north of Bremen.

A Syrian family's escape to Germany Uncertain future Today, the children go to a German school, while Khalil and his wife Hamida take German lessons. The electrical engineer hopes he'll find a job soon. The family enjoys remembering life in Syria. Ayaz, the youngest, still has his Syrian pre-school ID from Aleppo. Author: Klaus Krämer / db



Open doors

Mass irregular migration to the EU last year sowed the seeds of a political crisis in Germany and the rest of Europe.

Chancellor Angela Merkel's "open door" policy towards migrants fleeing war in the Middle East prompted her opponents and even allies to criticize her approach to migration.

The Left Party maintains an open position to refugees, especially those escaping the brutal conflict in Syria. However, individual members have been accused of using anti-immigrant rhetoric.

Germany is set to process more than one million asylum applications in 2016, according to the Federal Migration Office.

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ls/rg (AFP, dpa, TAZ)