Merkel authorises probe into Erdogan satire

The German government has authorised criminal proceedings requested by Turkey against a comedian over a satirical poem about Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The decision, taken on Friday (15 April), is likely to amplify debate in Germany over freedom of expression versus good relations with Turkey, which has pledged to help the EU to stem the flow of migrants.

Under German law probes on insulting organs or representatives of foreign states can go forward only with the ap...