Baerbel Bas said she plans to retain her seat as an MP for Duisburg, a city at the heart of the former Ruhr mining region in northern Germany. (EPA Images pic)BERLIN: German Chancellor Friedrich Merz's government faced new turbulence on Monday when a key minister from its junior coalition partner, the SPD, unexpectedly quit and criticised "attacks" from the chancellor's party.

Baerbel Bas, labour minister and co-leader of the centre-left SPD, cited personal reasons for her resignation, saying she needed time to grieve following the death of her daughter-in-law.

"I must unfortunately note that the public attacks against me – regrettably including those from within the ranks of our coalition partner – have continued to intensify during this difficult time for me personally," she said.