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Gul goes on defensive over Internet bill

Turkey’s President Abdullah Gul responds to the backlash over his support for a controversial Internet law in Turkey.
Turkish President Abdullah Gul speaks during a news conference with Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi (not pictured) after their meeting at Presidential Palace "Qasr Al Quba" in Cairo February 7, 2013. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh (EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3DGVJ

President Abdullah Gul, who hails from the same Islamist roots as Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has been cultivating an image for himself as a religiously devout, yet politically liberal and Western-oriented politician keen on European democratic and legal standards for Turkey.

Erdogan, with whom he cofounded and carried the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) to victory, however, has landed him in a position where his politically positive political persona took a nose-dive, leaving him on the defensive.

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