A Turkish pro-government newspaper has depicted Angela Merkel as “Frau Hitler” on its front page, dressing her up in a Nazi uniform and giving the German Chancellor a Hitler-style mustache.
According to multiple media reports, the right-wing newspaper Gunes also called Merkel “ugly aunt” in Turkish. Handelsblatt Global reports than an inner section reads, “She is not at all different from Hitler.”
Gunes, meaning “The Sun” in Turkish, has a circulation of around 100,000 copies. According to Agence France-Presse, the publication also printed, “Germany, which has open arms for terrorist organizations… is trying to instigate the whole of Europe against Turkey.”
This front page could damage the relationship between Germany and Turkey even more: earlier this month, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Germany of “Nazi practices” after certain campaign events were banned in the country. The cover page also comes on the same day as another Turkish official was barred from holding a political rally in the city of Hanover, according to Handelsblatt.
Erodgan is trying to mobilize Turkish people living in Germany to vote “yes” in an April 16 referendum, which would expand his presidential power.
According to AFP, the Turkish front page was published two days after Germany’s Bild newspaper accused Erdogan of “endangering Europe’s stability through his lust for power.” In response, the foreign ministry issued a statement calling the article “mind-boggling” and part of a mindset “hinged on hatred.”