AUSTRIA: Racism on a Sharp Rise

Mainstream political parties in Austria must change their approach if a growing anti-immigrant sentiment stoked by far-right politicians is to be curbed, racism watchdogs and political analysts say.

BALKANS: Church Hands Out Shock Treatment

The torture of drug addicts who had turned to the Serbian Orthodox Church for help has sent shock waves across the country.

TURKEY: Military Ghost Rises Again

Less than two years after its discreet sealing, the truce between ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party and the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) seems to have ended.

RELIGION-CUBA: Women in the Pulpit

Izet Samá has no regrets about her decision to devote every waking hour to her mission as pastor of the Presbyterian-Reformed Church, guiding a small congregation in the Cuban province of Havana.

US-IRAQ: Fate of Withdrawal Pact to be Decided at the Polls

As Iraqis witness a spike in violence after a months-long relative lull, the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has decided to put its security agreement with the U.S. to a public referendum, although the move appears to be only heightening a sense of uncertainty over the fate of the country.

POLITICS-INDIA: Hindu Fundamentalism in Retreat

As the leaders of the pro-Hindu, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) blame each other for the massive debacle that the party suffered in the April/May elections it is clear that its fundamentalist agenda has few takers in a rapidly modernising India.

U.S.: Report Blasts Terror Financing Laws and Investigations

Muslim charities in the United States are subject to unfair treatment by the government under terrorism financing laws, according to a new report which says the effect has been a chill on charitable giving that violates Muslims’ right to freely practice an important requirement of their religion.

U.S.: Museum Attack Seen as Home-Grown Terrorism

Wednesday’s killing of a guard at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum by an elderly white supremacist is the latest incident in what many see as a potential new wave of right-wing violence triggered, at least in part, by the election of President Barack Obama and the economic downturn.

RIGHTS-US: Palau Agrees to Take Guantanamo Uighurs

The announcement Wednesday that Palau will accommodate Chinese Muslims from Guantanamo Bay prison camp in Cuba leaves many unanswered questions, among them whether the U.S. will accept this gesture and whether it will be the best solution to the problem of the Uighurs’ resettlement, rights activists say.

US: Washington Heaves Sigh of Relief After Allies Win in Lebanon

The victory of the Western-backed coalition in Lebanon’s Sunday elections will likely allow the U.S. to avoid making tough decisions about how to deal with the country had the opposition, led by an armed Islamist militia, won.

RELIGION: New Family Law for Sunni Women in Bahrain Not for Shiites

A new family law for Sunnis, which protects the rights of women in Shariah (Islamic) law courts, was approved by Bahrain’s King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, on May 27. Women’s activists have pledged to continue their fight for a just law for the Gulf Arab kingdom’s Shiites.

U.S.: Obama Appeals to Muslim World for "New Beginning"

In what was perhaps the most widely anticipated speech delivered by a U.S. president abroad in recent memory, Barack Obama Thursday extended a hand to the world’s 1.4 billion Muslims, receiving repeated applause and a standing ovation from the audience at Cairo University in the Egyptian capital.

US-MIDEAST: Cairo Speech Widely Hailed at Home

U.S. President Barack Obama's historic speech in Cairo Thursday elicited broad approval from around the U.S., with the notable exception of the neoconservative right.

EGYPT: Muslim Brotherhood on the Mat

Several leading members of the Muslim Brotherhood opposition movement stand accused of plans to form an "international network of organisational cells." Its leaders say the charges are blatant fabrications.

FRANCE: Sharing a Recipe for Peace

Fourteen women are gathered in a Jewish kosher bakery on a sunny afternoon in Creteil, a multi-ethnic commune southeast of Paris. Bent over bowls of flour, tubs of butter and cartons of eggs, the women share jokes and anecdotes, speaking in both French and Arabic, as they knead dough and crack eggs open.

POLITICS-US: Anti-Abortion Movement Has New Poster Child

She's a politically savvy history student at the University of California, Los Angeles who is appearing on countless conservative talk radio programmes and cable television news shows.

GREECE: Showdown With Muslims Building Up

Fears have arisen for peace in Athens ahead of a large Muslim demonstration planned for Friday May 29. The demonstration has been called following rioting last week.

MIDEAST: Political Clouds Hang Over UNESCO Selection

With only a few days left before the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) nominates final candidates for the post of director-general, controversy continues to swirl around the leading contender, Egyptian culture minister Farouk Hosni.

POLITICS-US: Same-Sex Marriage May Return to the Ballot Box

In the wake of the California Supreme Court’s decision Tuesday to uphold Proposition 8, which eliminated the right of same-sex couples to marry, a surprising scapegoat and potential savior for opponents of the proposition has emerged in the California ballot initiative process.

CHINA-EU: Summit Redefines Diplomatic Boundaries

The global economic crisis has helped China and the European Union mend their recent rift over Tibet and human rights, but the two sides remain distrustful of each other’s intentions. Beijing complains that the EU’s crowded agenda makes it lose sight of the bigger picture in dealing with China. Brussels for its part, believes China is exploiting the EU’s divisions and treating the 27-state bloc with ‘diplomatic contempt’ on a range of issues from trade to the Dalai Lama.

POLITICS: At East-West Crossroads, Turkey Presses Ambitious Agenda

Two soaring bridges link Asia and Europe in this historic city, which straddles the two continents.