Al Jazeera and the NY Times both report this potentially explosive story of Turkey: Turkey's highest court has agreed to hear a case calling for a ban on the ruling Justice and Development party.
Interestingly, clicking on the NYT's link to the story takes one to a page entitled Europe. That is a point of contention in Europe, some European nations contending that Turkey is in Asia.
Osman Paksut, the court's deputy chairman, said the arguments were discussed and the decision was unanimous.
The contrast to the US, where religion is more than allowed to creep in -- in many cases forced in -- to secular, governmental affairs, is palpable.
The case was brought by Abdurrahman Yalcinkaya, chief prosecutor of the High Court of Appeals. The prosecutor argued that moves such as the abolition of a bar on headscarves in universities last month and an alcohol ban in restaurants run by AKP municipalities indicate the party's aim to establish a state based on Sharia law.
To deal with this threat, the government is resorting to a favoured political tactic that spans national borders, proving politicians are the sam all over.
The government has criticised the prosecutor's move as being anti-democratic. One ruling party official said it was planning a constitutional amendment making it harder to ban political parties.
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