Dutch set for TV election clash amid Turkey 'Nazism' storm

Dutch far-Right leader Geert Wilders
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Dutch far-Right leader Geert Wilders and prime minister Mark Rutte were due to clash in a TV election showdown today as a row with Turkey escalated, fuelling tensions over immigration.

Two days ahead of the poll, the Netherlands was gripped by a growing bust-up with Turkey that could swell support for Mr Wilders’s Freedom Party.

Ankara today summoned the Dutch envoy to complain about the actions of police against Turkish protesters at the weekend.

Officers used dogs and water cannon to disperse hundreds of protesters near the Turkish consulate in Rotterdam. One demonstrator was filmed having his leg gnawed by a police dog. Protesters threw bottles and stones and mounted police charged the crowd.

It followed a row over whether Turkish ministers should be allowed to campaign in Europe in a referendum over proposed greater powers for president Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan said 'Nazism is alive in the West' 
AP

Dutch authorities barred two Turkish ministers from addressing rallies in Holland, leading to Mr Erdogan claiming “Nazism is alive in the West”. Mr Rutte demanded an apology and other EU leaders sided with the Netherlands.

German interior minister Thomas de Maiziere said: “A Turkish campaign has no business being here in Germany.”

The row could benefit the anti-Islam, anti-EU Freedom Party, which is seeking to become the largest party in parliament. It had led in the polls but recently fell behind Mr Rutte’s liberals.

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