PM Erdoğan visits site of German fire, urges thorough investigation

Primer Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan yesterday traveled to Germany to hold a series of talks and to attend the Munich Conference on Security Policy, as well as to visit the scene of a deadly fire from earlier this week. Before leaving, when asked about statements by the Intercollegiate Board (UAK) and Turkish Bar Association on the controversial headscarf issue, Erdoğan said those groups do not represent all academics or all lawyers, adding that only Parliament has the authority to speak for the people. At the scene of the fire, Erdoğan was accompanied by State Minister Said Yazıcıoğlu and Kurt Beck, the premier of Germany 's state of Rhineland-Palatinate. During his visit, a group of local Turks held a protest of the fire, which some suspect was caused by arson. German authorities told Erdogan about the investigation of the blaze. "Both the German police and the firefighters did their best to save lives in the disaster, but we are expecting a thorough investigation," Erdoğan told a crowd gathered outside the apartment building after meeting the victims' families. "The grief of our nation is great. But our German friends I spoke to are also grieving." He added, "We hope that our grief will lead towards a fresh beginning." Erdoğan also visited the Turks who were injured in the fire.