Former Turkish PM Davutoglu forms new party in challenge to Erdogan’s AKP – report

Former Turkish PM Ahmet Davutoglu, once a close ally to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, applied on Thursday to establish a political party which could erode support for Erdogan and his ruling AK Party, Reuters reports.

Davutoglu, 60, served as prime minister from 2014 to 2016, before falling out with Erdogan. A source close to Davutoglu said the former PM applied to the Interior Ministry on Thursday to form his new party and that he will formally announce it in Ankara on Friday. It will be called Future Party, according to the source.

The former PM announced his resignation from the Islamist-rooted AKP in September, saying it was no longer able to solve Turkey’s problems and no longer allowed internal debate. His resignation came two months after former deputy prime minister Ali Babacan resigned from the AKP, citing “deep differences.”