Due to diplomatic tension between Turkey and Austria this year’s archaeological excavations in the ancient city of Ephesus, carried out by the Austrian Archaeology Institute have been cancelled by the Turkish Foreign Ministry.

Tension between both countries started when a ticker at the Vienna Airport in July stated that: “With a vacation in Turkey, you will only support  Erdoğan” – in connection with the questionable coup in Turkey against president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The conflict grew when the same ticker displayed a news headline claiming that Turkey would allow children under 15 years old to be sexually abused following Turkey’s Constitutional Court’s decision. The excavation house used by the Austrian team was probably sealed according to the instructions of the ministry. The course of tension between the two countries will determine whether the Austrian excavation team will be given permission for the future works in the ancient city.

(after Hurriyet Daily News & Wikimedia Commons)