ISTANBUL - Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul urged Iraqis on Sunday not to use the sentencing to death of former leader Saddam Hussein as an excuse to dismantle their war-torn country.
Questioned by journalists, Gul said the verdict "should delight the Iraqi people, who have known a gread deal of unhappiness."
"The unity of Iraq is very important to us, and this unity must continue," he said on Turkey`s NTV television.
Ankara regularly warns the significant Kurdish minority in neighbouring Iraq against seeking independence in case it encourages the secessionist leanings of Turkey`s own Kurds.
11/05/2006 15:17 GMT