Excerpt:
Germany's president appealed in a Christmas message for compassion and openness towards refugees coming to the country, which is grappling with a growing anti-Islam movement amid a debate about immigration.
President Joachim Gauck, a former dissident Lutheran pastor in ex-East Germany, said in the speech that he saw a great readiness by many to accept those seeking refuge in Germany.
This, he said, was a "clear sign of humanity".