Poland's political masters have extended their control over the supreme court, while continuing to denigrate EU concerns.

One of the biggest systemic risks across Europe, illustrated by Hungary and Poland, is the dominance of the executive power over the judiciary and informal channels of political dependency.

EU commission warnings on rule of law, such as those on Poland, can be a factor in halting extraditions, the EU's top court has said.

Western Europe is estimated to have 5,904 nationals affiliated with the Islamic State inside Iraq and Syria. Of those, around 1,765 have returned of which 47 percent are minors and eight percent are women, says a new report.

Italy is stepping up its campaign to stop EU warships and other rescue vessels from taking migrants to its ports.

German interior minister Horst Seehofer is in Vienna on Thursday - as his plan to reject some asylum seekers was met by an Austrian threat to close its borders too.

Poland's judicial purge was meant to punish former communists, its PM has said, in an angry EU debate that saw him ultimately promise to respect EU court rulings.

"Irreparable" harm threatens Polish courts if the government gets its way, EU authorities have warned, while opening a new front against Warsaw.

With the Polish minister of justice now enjoying the ability to dismiss and appoint heads of courts, there is concern about the "chilling effect" that this may have on judges.

Select EU leaders met amid rising tension over migration, with Italy's PM, who had threatened to boycott the summit, putting forward a new plans to stop boats from leaving Libya.

Gay spouses have the right to live anywhere in the EU, its top court just said, in a challenge to illiberal leaders in central Europe.

Some 300,000 school-age Syrian children in Turkey are not enrolled in classes. Fears they may end up in sweatshops or forced to beg have triggered efforts by the EU, Unicef, and the Turkish government to keep them in school.

EU court's handling of dispute between Ireland and Poland could make or break EU efforts to uphold rule of law.

Prolonged internal border checks are "unlawful", MEPs are preparing to say on Tuesday, in the EU parliament's first bid to protect free movement in Europe.