The Turkish news agency, Anatolia, says the authorities have charged almost a hundred people with belonging to an armed Islamic group, Hezbullah.

The semi-official agency said prosecutors in Diyarbakir had accused ninety-six people of killing, kidnapping, extortion, and plotting to set up an Islamic state.

Earlier this year, the authorities closed down the Islamist Welfare Party -- the biggest political party in the country.

Correspondents say the campaign bears striking similarities to the drive against Islamic groups in Uzbekistan, on the other side of the Caspian.

President Karimov of Uzbekistan has spoken warmly of Turkey as a regional ally, especially under its current, secular, leadership.