Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says he is preparing to bring back the death penalty.

The country's premier says he will approve capital punishment if parliament votes for it, following last month's attempted coup.

Speaking to supporters at a rally, he said: "My nation wants the death penalty. That is the decision of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey."

President Erdogan vowed to "destroy terrorists" threatening to harm the country, saying: "They will all be cleansed out like a cancer cell. We will find them and punish them."

The death penalty was legal until 2004 in Turkey. However, in practice it had not been enacted since 1984.

Capital punishment has been the source of much debate in the country, amid concerns that to introduce it could hamper attempts to join the European Union, as the death penalty is contrary to the EU's Charter of Human Rights.

The coup on 15 July represented a serious challenge to Mr Erdogan's presidency, however he resisted the attempt and remains in power. He blamed US-based cleric Fethullah Gulen for the coup and his supporters who are known as the "Gulen movement". It is critical of Mr Erdogan who they see as supporting a "political Islam" rather than a "cultural Islam" in his presidency.

In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Show all 17 1 /17 In pictures: Turkey coup attempt In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Turkish President Erdogan attends the funeral service for victims of the thwarted coup in Istanbul at Fatih mosque on July 17, 2016 in Istanbul, Turkey Burak Kara/Getty Images In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Soldiers involved in the coup attempt surrender on Bosphorus bridge with their hands raised in Istanbul on 16 July, 2016 Gokhan Tan/Getty In pictures: Turkey coup attempt A civilian beats a soldier after troops involved in the coup surrendered on the Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul, Turkey, 16 July, 2016 REUTERS/Murad Sezer In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Surrendered Turkish soldiers who were involved in the coup are beaten by a civilian Reuters In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Soliders involved in the coup attempt surrender on Bosphorus bridge Getty In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Supporters of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan wave flags as they capture a Turkish Army vehicle Getty In pictures: Turkey coup attempt People pose near a tank after troops involved in the coup surrendered on the Bosphorus Bridge in Istanbul, Turkey, 16 July, 2016 Reuters In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Turkish soldiers block Istanbul's Bosphorus Brigde Getty In pictures: Turkey coup attempt A Turkish military stands guard near the Taksim Square in Istanbul Reuters In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Pierre Crom/Twitter In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Turkish soldiers secure the area as supporters of Recep Tayyip Erdogan protest in Istanbul's Taksim square AP In pictures: Turkey coup attempt People demonstrate in front of the Republic Monument at the Taksim Square in Istanbul Murad Sezer/Reuters In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Turkish soldiers detain police officers during a security shutdown of the Bosphorus Bridge Reuters In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Turkish Army armoured personnel carriers in the main streets of Istanbul Getty In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Chaos reigned in Istanbul as tanks drove through the streets EPA/TOLGA BOZOGLU In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan speaks to media in the resort town of Marmaris Reuters In pictures: Turkey coup attempt Supporters of President Erdogan celebrate in Ankara following the suppression of the attempted coup Reuters

During the coup, more than 300 people were killed and at least a thousand were injured.