Right Wing Viennese Protest Turkey’s Erdogan

Two protest marches were held on Thursday to coincide with the visit to Vienna of Turkey’s controversial prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

A group of protesters clashed with Erdogan supporters on the Reichsbrücke, according to the Heute paper.

According to eyewitness reports a group of counter-demonstrators threw stones and glass bottles at the anti-Erdogan marchers. Police intervened and used pepper spray to disperse the protesters.

Erdogan was in Vienna for a private meeting with 7,000 of his closest friends and supporters in Austria.

The visit has stirred controversy, with Freedom Party (FPÖ) leader Heinz-Christian Strache warning him to stay home, and Austrian foreign minister Sebastien Kurz telling him to avoid making damaging remarksin his speech.

The Local

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Austrian far-right leader Heinz-Christian Strache told Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Sunday to “stay at home,” ahead of a controversial election rally planned in Vienna later this month.

The populist Freedom Party (FPOe) opposes Turkey’s proposed admission to the European Union and is also strongly anti-immigration and anti-Islam.

In recent EU elections, the FPOe — which has been seeking an alliance with France’s National Front and Italy’s Northern League — won 19.7 percent of votes, finishing third behind the ruling parties.

The Local