Gul's presidential bid withdrawn

May 06, 2007

The only candidate for president of Turkey, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul of the ruling AK Party, has ended his divisive bid ... He pulled out after the AKP failed for a second time to secure enough backing in parliament. The office is largely ceremonial in Turkey. But Gul's political roots are Islamist - a fact that's set off alarms among the secularist elite. There've been huge demonstrations against his candidacy by Turks worried Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan and Gul have a hidden Islamist agenda. Both deny the accusation.