International

Ankara has refused to let German lawmakers visit soldiers at two air bases. Volker Kauder, head of Merkel's conservative bloc in parliament, said this was unacceptable.

"It worries me that we have a NATO country that forbids visits by other NATO members," Kauder told broadcaster ARD. "This is an intolerable situation and we must say clearly to Turkey: this is not on."

Germany has warned its nationals traveling to Turkey that they did so at their own risk, and Schaeuble was quoted on Friday as comparing Turkey with the former communist East German state, the German Democratic Republic.In March, German authorities barred Turkish ministers from speaking at mass rallies of expatriates backing the president's referendum campaign. He responded by accusing Berlin of "fascist actions".

The activist arrests were part of a broader crackdown since last year's failed coup. More than 150,000 people have been sacked or suspended from jobs in Turkey's civil service, military and private sector and more than 50,000 have been jailed.