Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan managed to retain his ruling Justice and Development (AK) party positions, as Turkey’s constitutional court decided on July 30 not to disband the party in spite of speculation in recent months it might do so. The country’s chief prosecutor initiated the case against the AK in March, accusing it of undermining the secular foundations of the Turkish state, requesting that it be closed down and that 71 of its members, including Erdogan as well as president Abdullah Gul, be banned from political activity for five years. The court, however, decided to impose financial sanctions on the party.