Turkish parliament sworn in, turns focus to president
A new parliament was sworn in Saturday with the Islamist-rooted ruling party keeping its majority after elections last month and pro-Kurdish deputies joining for the first time in more than a decade.
Parliament’s first big issue is choosing a new president, and Turkey’s secular establishment fears the ruling Justice and Development Party will try to force through its candidate. Elections were held after the army blocked Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s choice for president, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul.
Pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party members took their oaths in Turkish, a break with the past, when such parties used Kurdish and were ousted.
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