The Turkish parliament's constitutional commission approved a draft constitutional reform law, paving the way for the general assembly to debate a bill expanding the president's powers, parliamentary sources said.
After a parliamentary vote, Turkey is set to hold a referendum on the changes by spring. Debate on the bill is expected to begin in the parliament's main assembly in January.
The commission completed approval of the draft in a marathon 17-hour session that finished early on Friday, the sources said. The draft was presented to the commission on Dec. 10 with 21 articles, but the approved version was reduced to 18 articles.
The ruling AK Party wants the backing of the nationalist MHP opposition to see the plan through parliament. Any constitutional change needs the support of at least 330 deputies in the 550-seat assembly to go to a referendum, Reuters reports.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's opponents say the constitutional proposals could lead towards authoritarian rule in Turkey.
