CORRECTS - Turkey appoints new foreign envoys

CORRECTS FACT THAT FERIDUN SINIRLIOGLU REMAINS AT UN AS TURKEY'S PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE WHILE AHMET MUHTAR GUN WILL BE PLACED IN VIENNA

By Meltem Bulur

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey has appointed Ambassador Ahmet Muhtar Gun as its new permanent representative to the United Nations in Vienna, according to a diplomatic source on Wednesday.

Gun served as deputy undersecretary at the Foreign Ministry. He will replace Emine Birnur Fertekligil, who was appointed in 2013, the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on talking to the media, said.

Meanwhile, Murat Mercan -- a ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party deputy from the western Eskisehir province -- has been appointed ambassador to Tokyo.

Merve Kavakci, a former Istanbul deputy from a right-wing Virtue Party, which was shut down in 2001, has been named ambassador to Kuala Lumpur.

Kavakci was known in Turkey for being banned from parliament after attending an oath ceremony in parliament for wearing a headscarf following her election as a lawmaker from Virtue Party. Her citizenship was also revoked.

Kavakci, who was also selected among the World’s Most Influential 500 Muslims by Georgetown University in 2009, had taken up her case to the European Court of Human Rights and won in 2007. Her citizenship was also restored, which then allowed her to hold an office to represent Turkey. The court had termed her expulsion from parliament as a violation of human rights.

Turkey lifted its ban on headscarves for women working in the civil service in 2013.

The list of other envoys appointed by Ankara are: Mustafa Yurdakul appointed as ambassador to Islamabad; Hasan Ulusoy to Sofia; Oguzhan Ertugrul to Kabul, Levent Gumrukcu to Brussels, Akif Oktay to Budapest and Ceren Yazgan to Tbilisi.