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Wed 07 Jul 2008Turkey's ruling party escapes ban
Turkey's highest judicial body today ruled against closing the governing AK Party for Islamist activities.
However, partial financial penalties have been imposed on the party, chief judge Hasim Kilic said.
The verdict is set to ease months of political uncertainty, which has battered Turkey's financial markets on fears that the democratically elected party would be closed down
The court case was linked to a long-running power struggle between Turkey's secularist establishment and the Islamist-based AK Party, which are at odds over the direction of the officially secular but predominantly Muslim country.
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