The European Union has voiced concern over a ruling by Turkey's Constitutional Court banning the only Kurdish party in parliament for having links with the banned PKK rebels.

The ruling means the 37 DTP MPs will no longer be allowed to do their work. EU chair Sweden described the ruling as exceptional and called for it to be used sparingly. The EU had previously warned that a ban on the DTP would violate the rights of Turkey's Kurdish minority.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (Photo: EPA)