Turkish army warns Islamists

The army has carried out three coups since 1960

The head of Turkey's powerful military, General Hilmi Ozkok, has said the army will protect the secular state from the dangers of radical Islam.

His statement comes just days after the Justice and Development (AK) Party, which has Islamic roots but denies having an Islamist agenda, swept to power.

Turkey's armed forces have the will and determination to protect the republic from all types of threats, particularly radical Islam and separatism

General Hilmi Ozkok

The party won a clear majority in Turkey's early parliamentary elections held on Sunday.

Turkey's military views itself as the guardian of the secular principles of the state set up by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in 1923, and has carried out three coups since 1960.

In 1997, it led a campaign to ease from power a government led by Islamists.

Ataturk anniversary

General Ozkok further said the elections were conducted in a democratic manner and the outcome reflected the will of the Turkish people.

Erdogan denies having an Islamist agenda

Traditionally issued to mark the anniversary of the death of Kemal Ataturk on Sunday, it was General Ozkok's first political statement since he started as a new chief of staff in August.

Unlike his predecessors, he is said to have been refraining from making comments on Turkey's political situation.

But the statement is an open warning to the AK Party to refrain from questioning the secular character of the Turkish state, Lale Sariibrahimoglu, a writer on defence issues, told BBC News Online.

Earlier this week, General Ozkok, who is in the US, refused to comment on the outcome of the Turkish elections saying that "the results were the wish of the nation" and he "respected them".

The leader of the AK Party, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has praised the army's commitment to the secular state and emphasised that he would promote Turkey's bid to join the European Union.