Turks in Germany stage pro-Erdogan demonstration
About 20,000 demonstrators from the Turkish community in Germany have staged a mass protest to denounce the failed coup of July 15 in Turkey and support President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
As the Sunday demonstration got underway in the city of Cologne, organizers played the national anthems of Turkey and Germany and held a minute of silence for the victims of the deadly coup attempt.
The demonstrators chanted, "Yes to democracy; No to the coup." Waving the Turkish flag, they held pictures of Erdogan and expressed their support for his administration.
Akif Cagatay Kilic, one of the protesters, said, "We are here because our compatriots in Germany advocate democracy and are against the attempted military coup."
Several smaller counter-demonstrations were also planned, including one named "Stop Erdogan."
Some 2,700 police officers were deployed to prevent trouble or any incident of violence.
Germany is home to about three million people of the Turkish origin.
According to the Turkish Communities organization in Germany, in the 2015 elections, 60 percent of the Turks in Germany voted for the governing Justice and Development Party (AKP).
The demonstration in Cologne ratcheted up diplomatic tensions between Ankara and Berlin.
Turkey has condemned a German court decision banning President Erdogan from addressing his supporters by video link at the rally in Cologne.
Turkish presidential spokesman, Ibrahim Kalin, said in a statement that the ban was "unacceptable."
"The practical and legal effort to prevent an event that advocates democracy, freedom and the rule of law and stands against the 15/7 coup attempt is a violation of the freedom of expression and the right to free assembly," the statement said.
"We are curious about the real reason why the German authorities and the constitutional court banned President Erdogan's message and hope that the German authorities will provide a satisfactory explanation," it added.
Over 245 people were killed and more than 2,100 others were injured during the abortive coup, in which an army faction, using hijacked helicopters and tanks, clashed with government troops and people on the streets of the capital Ankara and the city of Istanbul.
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