Turkey summons German envoy due to arson of consulate vehicle
Jürgen Schulz, Germany's ambassador to Ankara, is seen at a press conference at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, U.S., March 6, 2017. (Getty Images)


Germany’s Ambassador to Turkey Jürgen Schulz on Tuesday was summoned by the Foreign Ministry due to the arson attack of a vehicle belonging to Turkey’s Stuttgart Consulate General.

According to Foreign Ministry resources cited by Anadolu Agency (AA), Schulz was summoned due to the burning of the vehicle and the fact that other vehicles in the surrounding were also damaged during the fire and explosion.

Reiterating the various attacks on Turkish representations in Germany in the past few months, the ministry told Schulz Turkey expects the perpetrators to be brought to justice as soon as possible, while the damage is compensated according to diplomatic customary practice and complete security be provided.

Germany is home to 81 million people and the second-largest Muslim population in Western Europe after France. Of the country’s nearly 4.7 million Muslims, at least 3 million are of Turkish origin.

Racist attacks targeting Muslims or immigrants increasingly make the headlines as white supremacists become more efficient in an age where their ideals, or at least parts of them, are going mainstream. There is no single large group orchestrating these attacks against Muslims and immigrants. Rather, individual attacks lead to more attacks by copycats.

Turkish officials, including President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, have frequently urged European decision-makers and politicians to take a stance against racism and other types of discrimination that have threatened the lives of millions of people living within the bloc’s borders.