GETTY Angela Merkel opened Germany's doors to Syrian refugees last summer

FREE now and never miss the top politics stories again. SUBSCRIBE Invalid email Sign up fornow and never miss the top politics stories again. We will use your email address only for sending you newsletters. Please see our Privacy Notice for details of your data protection rights.

Katja Schneidt initially embraced Mrs Merkel's famous rallying call "we can do this" after the Chancellor opened Germany's doors to Syrian refugees last summer. But the 45-year-old has now written a book – titled We Can't Do This – expressing her anger at the country's dire integration policy. She wrote: "The euphoria at the beginning of the wave of refugees is gone. We are not able to cope with this refugee crisis successfully."

In her voluntary role, Ms Schneidt – from the state of Hesse – helped refugees find accommodation and receive medical treatment. But she now believes it is impossible to integrate every refugee into the country, which has been rocked by Islamist terror attacks this summer. She said: "You cannot expect the refugees to behave in a way that we want them to after an integration course. That is nonsense.

GETTY The Chancellor has been attacked by ex-refugee worker Katja Schneidt

Angela Merkel in pictures Tue, August 8, 2017 Angela Merkel has served as German Chancellor since 2005 and Leader of the Christian Democratic Union since 2000. We take a look at her political career in pictures. Play slideshow AFP/Getty Images 1 of 83 Angela Merkel through the years

GETTY Nearly 1.1 million refugees reached Germany last year, figures show

"Islam is not like Christianity. It is a life model, we can't argue them away. It is not enough to say that Islam belongs to Germany." According to official figures, nearly 1.1million refugees arrived in Germany in 2015, with a further 300,000 expected this year. But Mrs Merkel's open-door policy has sparked a major backlash in recent months, with her approval rating plummeting to a five-year low.

GETTY The under-fire CDU leader has vowed to deport failed asylum seekers