Turkey's new president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, was sworn in before parliament in Ankara in a ceremony that was not attended by members of the main opposition party.
Erdogan, 60, who was elected on August 10 for a five-year term, succeeded Abdulhal Gul as head of state.
The new president pledged to remain committed to "the Constitution, the rule of law, democracy, the principles and reforms of Kemal Ataturk and the principles of the secular state."
Before the swearing-in, deputies from the ranks of the Social Democrats left the hall, while far-right deputies refused to greet the new head of state with applause.
Erdogan, who has led the country as prime minister since 2003, announced changes to the Constitution in order to give him greater powers as president, since the head of state had a mainly protocol role until now.
After the handover of power ceremony, Erdogan will later today task the current head of diplomacy, Ahmet Davutoglu (55), to form a new government, the composition of which should be announced as early as tomorrow.
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