Austrian official: Turkish cyberattack on foreign ministry

Austria's foreign ministry says that Turkish hackers have again attacked its internet pages amid simmering tensions between the two countries.

Spokesman Thomas Schnoell says the ministry's home page was off line for several minutes.

The latest hit to already strained ties are moves by Chancellor Christian Kern and Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz to ban Turkish officials from campaigning in Austria on behalf of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and a proposed new constitution. Austria is home to hundreds of thousands of Turks, many with dual citizenship.

Schnoell identified the perpetrators Tuesday as Aslan Neferler Tim, a group that has claimed previous cyberattacks on his ministry, parliament and the defense ministry.

He says Kurz will "not be deterred from his Turkey policies" because of Monday's attacks.

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