A Turkish Airlines flight was forced to make an emergency landing in Germany today after an "unclaimed mobile phone" was found on board.

Flight TK1617 from Istanbul to Frankfurt was diverted to the German airport of Nuremberg after declaring an "emergency" on board.

Media outlets in Turkey reported that the pilots hit the panic alarm after a derelict mobile phone was found in the cabin. Turkish airlines said that the plane is carrying 124 passengers including four infants.

Turkey is curretly enduring a tense stand-off with Russia over the downing of a warplane over Syria and has also been the target of terrorist attacks by both Islamic State (ISIS) and the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

Turkish newspaper Antalya Ajans reported that the airliner suffered a bomb scare at 30,000 ft after "an unclaimed cell phone" was found on board shortly after it entered German airspace. It is not clear in what circumstances the device was found and specialist security teams began combing the aircraft shortly after it landed.

A spokesman for Turkish Airlines said: "The aircraft operating Turkish Airlines' Istanbul to Frankfurt flight today has diverted to Nuremberg due to a suspicious object found onboard."

"The necessary investigation onboard is continuing and the decision concerning the continuation of the flight to Frankfurt will be finalized according the result of such investigation."

Earlier tracking website Airlive net stated that the Boeing 737-800 airliner was diverting after reporting an "emergency".

Photographs posted on social media showed emergency services lining up on the tarmac at Nuremberg airport ahead of the plane's landing.

Several police cars and fire engines can be seen in the pictures with their emergency lights on.