Turkish court freezes Welfare Party funds

The Constitutional Court in Turkey has frozen more than five-and-a-half million dollars in government funding to the pro-Islamist Welfare Party, while it decides whether to declare the party illegal.

The court was told there was credible evidence that the party had plans to avoid returning the money to the treasury if it was closed down.

The Court is considering banning Welfare -- currently the largest party in parliament -- after a hearing last month, at which it was accused of undermining Turkey's secular state by promoting Islamic fundamentalism.

The funding is given to all parties annually, and is determined by the number of votes won at the last general election.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service