Turkish MPs vote for early poll

Abdullah Gul denies having a hidden Islamist agenda

Turkey's parliament has confirmed that early elections, aimed at ending a crisis over the party's candidate for president, will be held on 22 July.

MPs unanimously backed the ruling party's proposal in a vote which was carried live on national TV.

PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan proposed a June poll after the country's top court annulled the parliamentary vote for the party's candidate, Abdullah Gul.

But electoral officials said it could not be organised earlier than July.

Mr Erdogan says the court ruling was like "firing a bullet at democracy".

Opposition parties had boycotted the parliamentary vote to prevent Mr Gul, who is foreign minister, becoming president.

The opposition accuses Mr Gul of having a hidden Islamist agenda and says that if he becomes president it will threaten Turkey's secular tradition.

He denies the accusations.

Popular vote call

The constitutional court on Tuesday ruled that there was no quorum - two-thirds of lawmakers - for last Friday's vote for president in parliament.

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Mr Erdogan said the ruling would make it virtually impossible to elect a new president.

A general election would provide a fresh mandate for the government and add legitimacy to its policy on the election of a president, analysts say.

Mr Erdogan has said he wants the president elected by the people not parliament.

His suggestion came amid a number of electoral reform proposals in the wake of the court's ruling.

He also said he wanted the president to serve up to two five-year terms, instead of one seven-year term, and for parliament's term to last four years instead of five.

However, Mr Erdogan also appealed for unity amid deep divisions over the presidency which led to hundreds of thousands rallying in Istanbul on Sunday in support of secularism.

The army has maintained a close interest and has said it will not permit Turkey's secular traditions to be compromised.

However, on Wednesday the European Union warned the military to stay out of the crisis.