ANKARA: Ankara and Berlin were locked in acrimony Friday after several German towns scrapped rallies courting support from Turkish expatriates for a constitutional change that will expand President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s powers.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel rejected Turkey’s bitter accusations that her government had a hand in scrapping the rallies.
Turks vote on April 16 on whether to create a presidential system — a change that the government says will ensure political stability, but which critics say will herald one-man rule by Erdogan.
In the run-up to the referendum, controversy has flared over politicians’ trips to Germany, where they have been seeking “Yes” votes from the millions of people of Turkish descent.
One such event was a rally by Prime Minister Binali Yildirim in the western city of Oberhausen.
On Thursday, local authorities blocked rallies by two more Turkish ministers, prompting a furious response from Ankara which promptly summoned the German envoy to protest.
“They do not want Turkey to campaign here, they are working for a ‘No’,” Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told reporters in the Turkish capital on Friday. “They want to get in the way of a strong Turkey.”
But the German government denied having had anything to do with the cancellations.
“That is a decision the federal government has absolutely no influence on... because it falls under local or state jurisdiction on which we have zero influence,” said Foreign Ministry spokesman Martin Schaefer.
Merkel said the decisions were “taken by municipalities, and as a matter of principle, we apply freedom of expression in Germany.” She added: “I also think that it was our right to criticize any restrictions on press freedom.”
A third German town also canceled a rally due to take place Sunday at an event hall called Golden Palast in the town of Frechen, on the western outskirts of Cologne, with Turkish Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekci as the guest speaker.
Austria has also said it would not allow any campaign-related events.
Ties between Turkey and Germany have been frayed over a series of disputes since last July's failed coup targeting Erdogan.
Tempers on Monday flared again after 43-year-old Deniz Yucel, a correspondent for Germany’s Die Welt daily, was charged by an Istanbul court with spreading terrorist propaganda and inciting hatred.
The dual national has been held in prison since Feb. 18, with Gabriel saying the case would make “everything harder” for Turkish-German relations.
Turkish-German war of words escalates
Turkish-German war of words escalates
Related
US condemns RSF drone attack on World Food Programme convoy in Sudan’s North Kordofan
- Denise Brown, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Sudan, also expresses concern over the drone attack
WASHINGTON: The US has condemned a drone attack by Rapid Support Forces on an aid convoy in Sudan’s North Kordofan state that killed one person and injured three others.
“The United States condemns the recent drone attack on a World Food Program convoy in North Kordofan transporting food to famine-stricken people which killed one and wounded many others,” US Senior Adviser for Arab and African Affairs Massad Boulos wrote on X.
“Destroying food intended for people in need and killing humanitarian workers is sickening,” the US envoy wrote.
“The Trump Administration has zero tolerance for this destruction of life and of U.S.-funded assistance; we demand accountability and extend our condolences to all those affected by these inexcusable events and terrible war,” he added.
The Sudan Doctors Network, on its social media accounts, said the World Food Programme (WFP) convoy was struck by RSF drones in the Allah Karim area as it headed toward displaced people in El-Obeid, the state capital.
The network described the attack as a “clear violation of international humanitarian law,” warning that it undermines efforts to deliver life-saving aid to civilians amid worsening humanitarian conditions across the country.
There was no immediate comment from the rebel group.
The United States condemns the recent drone attack on a World Food Program convoy in North Kordofan transporting food to famine-stricken people which killed one and wounded many others. This follows an attack earlier this week in Blue Nile state that injured a @WFP staff member.…
— U.S. Senior Advisor for Arab and African Affairs (@US_SrAdvisorAF) February 6, 2026
Denise Brown, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Sudan, in a statement also expressed concern over the drone attack which hit the aid trucks in North Kordofan.
“I am deeply concerned by a drone attack earlier today on trucks contracted by the World Food Programme (WFP) in North Kordofan, the aftermath of which I came across a few hours later, as I left the state capital, El Obeid.”
“The trucks were en route from Kosti to deliver life-saving food assistance to displaced families near El Obeid when they were struck, tragically killing at least one individual and injuring many more. The trucks caught fire, destroying food commodities intended for life-saving humanitarian response.”
Brown added that “Humanitarian personnel, assets and supplies must be protected at all times. Attacks on aid operations undermine efforts to reach people facing hunger and displacement.”
“Safe and unimpeded humanitarian access remains critical to ensure assistance reaches the most vulnerable people across Sudan.”
Since April 2023, the conflict between Sudan’s army and the paramilitary forces has killed tens of thousands, displaced 11 million and which the UN has described as one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.
An alert issued by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), confirmed famine conditions in El-Fasher and Kadugli, the capital of South Kordofan, about 800 kilometers to the east.
The IPC said that 20 more areas in Sudan’s Darfur and neighboring Kordofan were at risk of famine.
Of Sudan’s 18 states, the RSF controls all five states in the western Darfur region, except for parts of North Darfur that remain under army control. The army holds most areas of the remaining 13 states across the south, north, east and center of the country, including the capital, Khartoum.
The conflict between the army and the RSF, which erupted in April 2023, has killed thousands of people and displaced millions.
