The key points in the article are that the assumption of a horrible result did not happen. Most immigrants are peaceful. German intelligence agencies are really efficient. And Germany worked hard to manage and slow down the wave of immigration.
In other words, a decent, rational approach worked.
How Angela Merkel’s great migrant gamble paid off
Five years ago, as more and more refugees crossed into Europe, Germany’s chancellor proclaimed, ‘We’ll manage this.’ Critics said it was her great mistake – but she has been proved right
...
The spectre of jihadist terrorism, which some feared the refugee crisis would usher into the heart of central Europe, has faded from view in recent years. After a spate of seven attacks with an Islamist motive in Germany in 2016, culminating with a truck driven into a Berlin Christmas market that December, the country has seen no further attacks for the last three years.
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“In hindsight, Isis’s collapse happened quicker than we expected. It’s now clear that what made them so attractive for a while is less their ideology than their success. And when Isis stopped being successful, it stopped being attractive.”
However, Neumann says this was also due to the increasing efficiency of German intelligence agencies....
Last year, crime in Germany sank to an 18-year low.
In other words, a decent, rational approach worked.
How Angela Merkel’s great migrant gamble paid off
Five years ago, as more and more refugees crossed into Europe, Germany’s chancellor proclaimed, ‘We’ll manage this.’ Critics said it was her great mistake – but she has been proved right
...
The spectre of jihadist terrorism, which some feared the refugee crisis would usher into the heart of central Europe, has faded from view in recent years. After a spate of seven attacks with an Islamist motive in Germany in 2016, culminating with a truck driven into a Berlin Christmas market that December, the country has seen no further attacks for the last three years.
...
“In hindsight, Isis’s collapse happened quicker than we expected. It’s now clear that what made them so attractive for a while is less their ideology than their success. And when Isis stopped being successful, it stopped being attractive.”
However, Neumann says this was also due to the increasing efficiency of German intelligence agencies....
Last year, crime in Germany sank to an 18-year low.