The German Chancellor was blasted for being mealy-mouthed when responding to President Reccep Tayyip Erdogan after he accused Germans of hypocrisy.
The major argument between the two allies has left Merkel struggling to secure a deal for Turkey to help Europe with its migrant crisis in return for letting Turks into the continent.
Erdogan aimed his criticism at the embattled chancellor after German lawmakers voted to recognise the massacre of Armenians by Ottoman forces as genocide.
Several German MPs with Turkish heritage have received death threats after voting for the law.
Desperate Merkel described the comments from Turkey as “incomprehensible” and defended the MPs in question as “freely elected parliamentarians”.
But her comments drew heavy criticism from fellow German MPs who slammed her for not doing enough to rebuke the comments.
Vice-President of the German parliament Claudia Roth said: “The chancellor has to take up a definite position against Erdogan.
“We can’t let him get away with that.”
Leader of the Social Democrats Thomas Oppermann hammered the chancellor for not making it clear on her position.
He said Merkel needs to make it very clear “she finds this witch-hunt against Germans parliamentarians intolerable”.
Merkel has come under serious criticism following the migrant crisis and the rise of the far-right in Europe.
The state of affairs in Merkel’s government has been dubbed the party’s “worst internal crisis in 40 years”.
The chancellor has also been accused of taking the party too far to the left by removing key conservatives from her cabinet.