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Seething demonstrators came out to protest the German leader’s arrival, with many holding red banners and flags bering an image of two hands pressed together in a ‘diamond’ shape – Merkel’s distinctive gesture. Protestors marched through the streets chanting the same slogan and were filmed protesting as Merkel’s car arrived at the Leopoldina National Academy for Science.

GETTY/BEHEMIL The protests come following calls to stop comparisons between modern Germany and the Nazis

Merkel was handed a joint statement from the 20 heads of German national academies calling for a better standard of global healthcare ahead of the G20 summit due to be held in Hamburg in July. In her address, she said: “As presidents of national academies and representatives of your countries, you are building bridges.”

GETTY Merkel visited the city of Halle ahead of the G20 Summit in Hamburg later this year

She added that should another global pandemic take place, “the world could plunge into a very difficult state. And that’s why a topic like health should be on the G20 agenda”. Earlier this month, a Turkish newspaper showed a picture of Merkel in full Nazi uniform along with the caption ‘Frau Hitler’, a loose translation of ‘Mrs Hitler’. The newspaper was founded by president Recep Tayyip Erdogan and is widely regarded as a strong supporter of his policies.

GETTY Earlier in March, a Turkish newspaper printed this front page depicted Merkel as a Nazi

The article claimed the German government’s “current actions are no different to those of the Nazi period”. On March 9, Merkel called for comparisons to Hitler’s Germany to be stopped, and added: “We will not allow the victims of the Nazis to be trivialised.”

The many faces of Angela Merkel Wed, May 17, 2017 German Chancellor, Angela Merkel through the years Play slideshow 1 of 16