Migrants stream into Balkans, Germany braces for far-right rally

Thousands of migrants again streamed into the Balkans Monday where tighter border controls caused tense bottlenecks, as Germany braced for anger at an anniversary rally of the anti-refugee PEGIDA movement.

 Europe's unprecedented influx has seen asylum seekers -- mainly fleeing war in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan -- travelling via Turkey, Greece and the western Balkans, hoping to seek safe haven in Germany and other EU states.

 Tensions have built along the migrant trail after Hungary shut its key borders with razor wire -- diverting the flow west to Slovenia, which in turn also limited arrivals, as did Croatia.

 On Monday thousands of refugees waited in cold and heavy rain at one of the chokepoints, Berkasovo on the Serbia-Croatia frontier, where families huddled around fires and children walked barefoot in the mud.

 "This is beyond our capacity," said Czech volunteer Jan Pinos. "There is no one from the authorities here. We need police, army, some tents, food."

 He warned of "increasing tension" and desperation among pregnant women and children, including a baby that nearly died overnight in the chaos.

 "It's a matter of time before this is out of control," Pinos told AFP as more continued to arrive on foot or in taxis and buses.

 Despite the delays, there has was no sign of a let-up.

 More than 15,000 crossed from Greece into Macedonia at the weekend, said local authorities. From there, the UN refugee office said, 10,000 marched on into Serbia overnight.

 By the agency's count, more than 600,000 migrants have come to Europe's shores so far this year, on dangerous journeys that have left more than 3,000 dead or missing.

 The ultimate goal for many is the EU's biggest economy, Germany, which expects to take in around one million refugees this year, and where Chancellor Angela Merkel's open-door policy has sparked a dangerous backlash.