The fourth public appearance by Turkish ministers to campaign ahead of the April 16 referendum was canceled by a German local authority on Monday.

Axar.az reports that, police in the city of Hamburg said a venue where Foreign Minister Mevlut Chavushoghlu had planned to speak Tuesday could not be used "after serious fire safety deficiencies were identified and the use of the property was immediately prohibited".

Previously on Friday, Cologne authorities withdrew permission for a hall to be used for a speech by Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekci in Frechen on the outskirts of the city.

Last Thursday, German authorities also banned Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag from meeting with Turks in the western German town of Gaggenau, citing inadequate meeting facilities and parking lots as excuses for the ban.

Bozdağ strongly condemned the decision, calling the decision a purely fascist practice. Despite strong reactions from Turkish politicians, Gaggenau Mayor Michael Pfeiffer said the decision was not a political one.

In the wake of the incident, the Turkish Foreign Ministry summoned the German Ambassador to Ankara Martin Erdmann and he was received by the deputy secretary responsible for European affairs Mehmet Kemal Bozay. Turkey's written démarche was also delivered to Erdmann.

Likewise, a hotel in Germany's northern port city of Hamburg cancelled Foreign Minister Mevlut Chavushoghlu's scheduled March 7 conference, also citing security reasons. Chavushoghlu has had three phone calls with his German counterpart in the last two days and the two foreign ministers are scheduled to meet on Wednesday.