The German Spiegel magazine reported that the fact-finding mission headed by Ralf Brauksiepe, parliamentary state secretary for the country's defense ministry, was prohibited from visiting Incirlik, in a signal that German officials were not welcome guests in Turkey.
The magazine added, citing a military source, that the move by Ankara followed the decision of the German parliament to recognize the 1915-1916 massacre of Armenians by the Ottoman Empire as genocide.
Around 1.2 million Armenians were killed or starved to death by the Ottoman Empire during and after World War I. Turkey has repeatedly denied accusations of committing mass murder of Armenians, claiming that the victims of the tragedy were both Turks and Armenians.
Armenia insists on the recognition of the Armenian genocide by the Ottoman Empire by the international community. The Armenian genocide has already been recognized by Russia and numerous EU countries, as well as the European Parliament.
