German Chancellor Angela Merkel's office announced on Thursday that her mother, Herald Kessner, had died at the age of 90, in a brief statement to the office demanding respect for "the privacy of the chancellor and her family." Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made a phone call to the Chancellor expressing his condolences.
According to German media reports quoted by the Associated Press, the mother of Merkel - who lived in the town of Templin, about 75 km north of Berlin - died earlier this month.
| Merkel's mother is a retired English language teacher in Templeline (Reuters) |
Merkel was close to her mother, who was present in parliament when the chancellor swore sworn in when she took over her fourth term last year. The chancellor, who seldom talks about her private life, did not issue any public comment on the death.
The mother of the Chancellor was a retired English language teacher in the town of Tempelin, while her father, who died in 2011, was a Protestant priest.
In a telephone conversation, the Turkish president expressed his condolences to Merkel, according to a statement issued by the Turkish Presidential Liaison Service.
Erdogan and Merkel also exchanged views on relations between the two countries, the statement said.