“NAZISM is alive in the West,” declared Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan yesterday after the Netherlands blocked weekend rallies whipping up support for his power-grab referendum.

The authoritarian leader demanded international sanctions against his Nato ally after Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu and Families Minister Fatma Betul Sayan Kaya were prevented from campaigning among Turkish immigrants ahead of the April 16 referendum concentrating greater power in the president’s hands.

Dutch authorities refused to even let Mr Cavusoglu’s plane land in Amsterdam.