Interior Ministry spokesman Johannes Dimroth told a regular government news conference the figure included Turkish diplomats as well as their family members, but did not say if they had all been based in Germany.

He said he could not give any more details on the diplomats and their motivation to apply for asylum in Germany.

At the Turkish embassy in Berlin, nobody was immediately available to comment

It was not clear if the Turkish government has requested the extradition of the diplomats by German authorities.

In Turkey, more than 32,000 people were put in jail and 100,000 have been dismissed from jobs in the security and civil services for their alleged links to a religious network the government says staged the July 15 military coup.

The scale of the purges has drawn criticism from opposition politicians and Western allies that President Tayyip Erdogan may be using the coup to consolidate power.

Accused mastermind, US-based cleric Fethullah Gulen, denies involvement in the unsuccessful coup that killed 240 people who resisted it and around 100 rogue troops.

Originally published as 35 Turkish diplomats seek German asylum