Former Turkish PM faces trial

Ankara - A Turkish court has ordered the former Islamist prime minister, Mr Necmettin Erbakan, to stand trial in June on charges…

Ankara - A Turkish court has ordered the former Islamist prime minister, Mr Necmettin Erbakan, to stand trial in June on charges of insulting the judiciary, a prosecutor said yesterday. State prosecutor Mr Bekir Selcuk said an Ankara criminal court had ordered Mr Erbakan to attend a hearing on June 29th. "We expect the case to be concluded the same day," he said. Meanwhile yesterday, military officials said thousands of Turkish troops backed by air power had attacked Kurdish separatist rebels in the mountainous south-east of the country.

"Thirty-five terrorists have been killed so far in the operation," one official, based in the main south-eastern city of Diyarbakir, said.