Turks look to Germany for asylum

BERLIN — Germany is continuing to receive requests for asylum from Turks with diplomatic passports in the wake of a crackdown on the opposition following last year’s failed coup, Germany’s Interior Ministry said Friday. At least 136 people with Turkish diplomatic passports are currently applying for asylum, said Tobias Plate, a ministry spokesman, who was responding to media reports. He didn’t confirm reports by public broadcaster NDR and daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung that the figure had stood at 53 in November. The situation has caused diplomatic tension between the two countries. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pressed German Chancellor Angela Merkel to reject asylum requests and extradite 40 soldiers allegedly involved in the failed July 15 coup. Germany denounced the coup attempt but has been critical of the crackdown that followed, which saw tens of thousands of government employees lose their jobs and thousands imprisoned. The overall number of asylum applications from Turkey rose from 1,800 in 2014 to 4,600 in 2015, and 5,700 last year. Most of those who applied for asylum in 2016 said they belonged to the Kurdish ethnic minority, Plate said.