Leading voices in Europe say another European should head the International Monetary Fund (IMF) following the resignation of Dominique Strauss-Kahn.

Leading voices in Europe say another European should head the International Monetary Fund (IMF) following the resignation of Dominique Strauss-Kahn.

Germany's Angela Merkel and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso's comments come amid debate over whether the next IMF chief should come from the developing world.

Ms Merkel said a European was needed in light of the eurozone's problems.

Mr Strauss-Kahn is in jail in the US, accused of trying to rape a hotel maid.

He denies the charges and will make a second application for bail later on Thursday.

Mr Strauss-Kahn had been coming under mounting international pressure to leave his post amid the furore over his arrest.

In a statement posted on the IMF website late on Wednesday, he said he resigned with "infinite sadness", but wanted to "devote all my strength, all my time, and all my energy to proving my innocence".

Mr Strauss-Kahn's deputy, John Lipsky, has been placed in interim control of the organisation, and the IMF says it will release information "in the near future" about the appointment of a permanent successor.