Turkish army on high alert

Turkey says it has placed its armed forces on high alert in preparation for any possible military action by the United States following Tuesday's attacks in New York and Washington.

A defence ministry official said all leave for armed forces personnel had been cancelled.

In an interview with the American television network, CNN, the Turkish prime minister, Bulent Ecevit, reiterated Turkey's willingness to cooperate with its Nato allies to root out terrorism. Turkey has the second largest standing army in Nato.

American and British military aircraft have used Turkish air bases to patrol the no-fly zones over Iraq since the end of the Gulf War.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service