International outcry over Istanbul election re-run

The EU and leading member states have sharply criticised a decision in Turkey to re-run Istanbul’s mayoral election, after a shock opposition win. Germany’s Foreign Minister Heiko Mass called the re-run “incomprehensible”. The move was also criticised by the French government and by leading MEP Guy Verhofstadt, who said Turkey was “drifting towards dictatorship”. The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan last month lost the mayorship of Turkey’s biggest city by a narrow margin, but Mr Erdogan refused to accept defeat.