Turkey’s President Abdullah Gul pardoned Tuesday the former leader of the banned Islamic-rooted Welfare Party (RP), Necmettin Erbakan, who was under house arrest after being found guilty on corruption charges.

- 20 / 08 / 2008 08:02

Turkey’s President Abdullah Gul pardoned Tuesday the former leader of the banned Islamic-rooted Welfare Party (RP), Necmettin Erbakan, who was under house arrest after being found guilty on corruption charges.

Gul pardoned former Prime Minister Erbakan because of "chronic illness", the Presidential Press Center said in a statement, adding his condition did not permit the continuation of his sentence.

The Ankara Criminal Court earlier ruled that Erbakan could serve out the two year and four month prison sentence handed down in the case publicly known as "the missing trillions" at his private residence.

Erbakan, a longtime leader of the country’s Islamic political movement, began serving a 28-month sentence at home on May 26.

He was convicted of falsifying party records and hiding millions of dollars in cash reserves ordered seized after his Welfare Party was shut down in 1997.

Erbakan served only briefly as prime minister before he was pressured to step down.

Gul and Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan and many of his legislators were members of Erbakan’s party.