Turkey PM Ahmet Davutoglu to quit amid Erdogan rift rumours
Turkey's Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu says he will stand down at an extraordinary congress of his ruling AK Party later this month.
Speculation about his resignation has been rife since Mr Davutoglu met President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday (04/05/2016).
He is long thought to have disapproved of Mr Erdogan's plans to move Turkey to a presidential system of government.
He announced his resignation after holding talks with party leaders.
The congress would be held on 22 May, he said.
Earlier on Thursday, presidential aide Cemil Ertem said there would be no snap elections following the appointment of a new leader.
He also told Turkish TV that the country and its economy would stabilise further "when a prime minister more closely aligned with President Erdogan takes office".
Why is this happening now?
After he was elected president in 2014, Mr Erdogan hand-picked Mr Davutoglu to succeed him as head of the AK Party (Justice and Development Party).
But the prime minister's unease with Mr Erdogan's plans to move to a presidential system, among other policies, has been evident in recent months.
In a sign of his weakening influence, Mr Davutoglu was stripped last week of the authority to appoint provincial AK Party officials.
Source: bbc.com
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