Army on warpath in Turkey

8220;Unless Erbakan resigns by June 18 in a move to handover the Prime Ministership to Ciller, our True Path Party will withdraw from the government,8221; Conservative True Path8217;s parliamentary group leader Mehmet Gozlukaya told this agency on Wednesday.

8220;We will accept no other conditions8221; set by Erbakan8217;s Welfare Party, Gozlukaya said after True Path8217;s parliamentary group meeting. 8220;We had a unanimous decision for that at the group meeting8221;, he added.

Another aide to the Foreign Minister said Ciller feared a move by the military to 8220;put a forceful end to the government8221; if Erbakan remained Prime Minister.

8220;Ciller thinks that her premiership is the only way for the continuation of the alliance with Welfare,8221; the aide who asked not to be named, told this agency.

8220;True Path is acting in line with its principles,8221; Ciller briefly told reporters after the meeting.

Earlier on Tuesday, a senior general vowed that the military, which sees itself as the guardians of modern Turkey8217;s secular heritage, would use all means to avert efforts by Islamic extremists to destroy the regime.8220;Subversive religious activities have been boosted during the term of this government,8221; General Fevzi Turkeri, head of intelligence at the Turkish general staff, told journalists.

8220;Welfare deputies favouring political Islam have attempted to incite the people against the secular regime and the army, and boosted subversive activities,8221; Turkeri said.

8220;The Turkish armed forces has the constitutional rights to defend the regime against internal and external threats8230;The fight against subversive religious activities using all means is of highest priority for the armed forces,8221; the general said.

The military and Erbakan8217;s welfare have long been involved in a bitter row over creeping Islamisation in Turkey, but Turkeri8217;s remarks were the harshest public criticism and warning to date against the Islamists.8220;Escalation of tensions between the government and the military is extremely worrying,8221; Conservative main opposition leader Mesut Yilmaz told a meeting of his motherland party deputies.

This was the first time Ciller had threatened the Islamist with ending the coalition government led by Erbaken since the Prime Minister took office on June 28 last year.