(USASABAH and Agencies)
Turkey on Monday voiced "great satisfaction" at the killing of Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden, while renewing an appeal against linking terrorism and Islam.
"I welcomed his death with great satisfaction," President Abdullah Gul told journalists at the Ankara airport ahead of a state visit to Austria.
"The way in which he was eliminated should serve as an example to everyone," he said.
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu also welcomed bin Laden's death and voiced hope that "everybody will learn a lesson."
"One of the worst impacts of his extremely destructive actions was that they served for drawing a link between ... the civilization of Islam and terrorism," Davutoglu told reporters.
"Turkey will continue to support the struggle against international terrorism... and stand up against those who seek to associate the deep-rooted heritage of Islam and terrorism," he added.
Police in Turkey, NATO's sole Muslim-majority member, have regularly targeted suspected supporters of Al-Qaeda since two sets of twin suicide bombings hit Istanbul five days apart in November 2003.
A Turkish cell of the extremist network was held responsible for the attacks, in which explosive-laden trucks targeted two synagogues, the British consulate and a British bank, killing a total of 63 people, including the British consul.
Seven men were jailed for life in 2007 over the bombings, among them a Syrian national who masterminded and financed the attacks.
