(AFP) – Nov 26, 2010

ANKARA — Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan will travel to Libya next week to receive a human rights prize dedicated to Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi, his office said on Friday.

Erdogan will receive the Kadhafi International Prize for Human Rights on Wednesday at a ceremony in Tripoli, where he would also attend, as a guest, an Africa-EU summit, the statement said.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, Cuban leader Fidel Castro and South Africa's Nelson Mandela are among the previous recipients of the prize.

Erdogan has won significant popularity in the Arab world due to his tough rhetoric against Israel, following the Jewish state's devastating war on the Gaza Strip last year and its deadly operation on a Gaza-bound aid ship in May, in which nine Turks were killed.

Earlier this week, he received a warm welcome during a visit to Lebanon, where he was awarded a leadership prize by the Union of Arab Banks.

Erdogan's Islamist-rooted government has sought close ties with Arab nations and Iran, causing concern in the West that NATO's sole Muslim-majority member is turning East.

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