US ambassador is admonished by Erdogan to "know his place"

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said that from now on, his “doors are closed” to the US ambassador to Ankara, Jeffry Flake, blasting the diplomat’s recent meeting with his rival in the upcoming presidential election. Erdogan attended a ceremony in the Bagcilar district of Istanbul on Sunday, dedicated to the official opening of nearly 100 houses and other facilities built in the wake of a series of devastating earthquakes. In a follow-up meeting with a group of officials from the far-right Grey Wolves movement, he focused on the May 14 election and the US envoy’s alleged abuse of his diplomatic authority. Erdogan’s remarks come less than six weeks before presidential and general elections take place in Türkiye on May 14, with Kilicdaroglu put forward by an alliance of six opposition parties as his main opponent after months of political infighting. The president and his ruling AK Party are expected to face a tough challenge following the devastating earthquake that killed more than 50,000 people in the country in early February.