Missing 'caliph' still in Cologne

By Bethany Bell
BBC, Berlin

A lawyer for Islamist leader Metin Kaplan, who is due to be expelled from Germany, says he is still in Cologne.

Mr Kaplan, 51, known as the Caliph of Cologne went missing on Wednesday after a court ruled he could be extradited to Turkey to face treason charges.

But now, another court has ruled he can stay in Germany for two months to have the chance to appeal and the arrest warrant has been lifted.

For 24 hours, Mr Kaplan was the most sought-after man in Germany.

Metin Kaplan had not left Cologne

Now it appears that he never left Cologne.

His lawyer, Ingeborg Naumann, says her client is still in the city.

She said Mr Kaplan would report to the police next week as he is obliged to do by law.

The confusion caused by the two court rulings and Mr Kaplan's disappearance has sparked a political row in Germany.

But the police said they did everything legally possible.

Mr Kaplan is wanted in Turkey to face charges that he plotted to attack the mausoleum of the founder of modern Turkey, Kemal Ataturk, with an aeroplane.