Turkish president cancels campaign stops over health issue

Turkish President and People's Alliance's presidential candidate Recep Tayyip Erdogan gives a speech during an election rally campaign in Istanbul, Turkey. [AP Photo]

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced he was canceling a day of election campaigning on Wednesday to rest at home, a day after he was forced to briefly interrupt a television interview over a stomach complaint.

Erdogan was being interviewed live by Turkey's Ulke TV and Kanal 7 stations late on Tuesday when the program was suddenly stopped. When the interview resumed around 20 minutes later, Erdogan, 69, explained that he had developed a serious "stomach flu" while campaigning and apologized for the interruption.