Turkish foreign minister to attend French rally as Dutch row rages

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu is expected to address a public meeting in France on Sunday, a local official said, a day after the Netherlands barred his plane from landing in a row over Ankara's political campaigning among Turkish emigres.

Cavusoglu is scheduled to speak in Metz, eastern France, at 1200 GMT, an official at the Moselle regional prefecture told Reuters on Saturday, adding that there were currently no plans to prevent the meeting from going ahead.

"Our job is to make sure there's no threat to public order, and there is none," the official said. French police will maintain a protective presence at the event. The visit has been cleared by the French foreign ministry, local official Alain Carton told AFP.

The gathering was also announced on Facebook by the Metz chapter of Ditib, a Turkish state-backed Islamic association.

Earlier on Saturday, the Netherlands barred Cavusoglu's plane from landing in Rotterdam after the minister declared that he would fly there in spite of a decision by Dutch authorities not to authorise a planned rally.

Protests erupted in Rotterdam late Saturday outside the Turkish consulate with more than 1,000 people waving Turkish flags gathered on the street as tensions soared over rallies abroad to help Ankara gain backing for an April referendum vote.

There was a large police presence, but the crowd, many also sporting badges with the picture of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, remained largely calm, chanting and shouting.

"The people are very angry tonight. They feel that their freedom of expression has been denied. We are demonstrating because we want to hear our ministers speak," Said Marti, 50, from Rotterdam, said.

Early on Sunday, police moved in using water cannon and horses to break up the protests. Some police carried out mounted charges on horseback, forcefully dispersing the crowds.

The port city's mayor, Ahmed Aboutaleb, said early Sunday that a Turkish minister was being escorted back to Germany from Rotterdam by police after being prevented from addressing a rally.

Turkey's Family Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya, who had arrived late Saturday, was "on the way from Rotterdam to Germany," Aboutaleb told reporters, adding she was being taken to the border and expelled.

Authorities in Germany, Austria and Switzerland have also banned Turkish campaign events in the escalating dispute.

Erdogan, who described the Dutch as "Nazi remnants" after Cavusoglu was turned away, has chafed at Western criticism of mass arrests carried out in the wake of a July coup attempt.

Erdogan is looking to Turkish émigrés across Europe to help clinch victory in the 16 April vote, which promises to shape the future of Turkey and its role as a crucial NATO member in strategic proximity to the Middle East.

Meanwhile, Turkish authorities have sealed off the Dutch embassy and consulate in Istanbul, sources at Turkey's foreign ministry said on Saturday, as the row between the two countries over Turkish campaigning in Europe escalated.

Turkey also closed off the residences of the Dutch ambassador, charge d'affaires and consul general as tensions between the NATO partners escalated after the Dutch government barred Turkey's foreign minister from flying to Rotterdam.

Earlier, Turkey's Family Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya was blocked by Dutch police from entering the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam, NOS News reported.