Merih Demiral: Germany summons Turkish ambassador as controversy erupts over alleged right-wing goal salute

Berlin
CNN
—

Germany summoned Turkey's ambassador to Berlin on Thursday in response to a controversial gesture by a Turkish football player celebrating a goal at the European Championship, the German Foreign Ministry said.

A diplomatic row has erupted after Turkish defender Merih Demiral made an alleged ultra-nationalist gesture – also known as a “wolf salute”, which is associated with Turkey’s far-right group “Grey Wolves”. – during his team's victory against Austria on Tuesday.

“The Turkish ambassador was summoned this morning,” the ministry said in a statement to CNN, a day after Turkey recalled the German ambassador to Ankara. German officials discussed the incident with the Turkish ambassador in Berlin, the ministry added.

European football's governing body UEFA said in a statement on Wednesday that it was investigating Demiral's “alleged inappropriate behaviour”, drawing condemnation from German officials, but Ankara immediately branded Berlin's reaction “xenophobia” and summoned the German ambassador.

“We can confirm that the German ambassador to Turkey was summoned yesterday,” the German Foreign Ministry said on Thursday.

German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser warned on Wednesday that “symbols of the Turkish far right have no place in our stadiums” and that “using the European Football Championship as a platform for racism is completely unacceptable.” Faeser added that the “Grey Wolves” group was under surveillance in Germany.

German CNN affiliate NTV reported Thursday that Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan is expected to travel to Berlin on Saturday for Turkey's match against the Netherlands.

After Turkey's 2-1 round of 16 win over Austria, Demiral posted a photo of himself making the controversial gesture on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“Happy is he who calls himself a Turk,” the defender captioned the post.

“I had a specific celebration in mind. That's what I did. It has to do with Turkish identity, because I'm very proud to be Turkish. And I felt it very strongly after the second goal, so I ended up doing that gesture,” Demiral told reporters after the match. “I'm very happy that I did it.”

In a statement on Wednesday, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said it was “unacceptable” for UEFA to open a disciplinary investigation against Demiral.

“Although the symbol of the grey wolf is not banned in Germany, the reactions of the German authorities towards Mr Demiral are in themselves xenophobic,” he said. “We condemn the politically motivated reactions to the use of a historical and cultural symbol in a way that targets no one during the celebration of joy at a sporting event.”