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'I agreed to become a suicide bomber'

A 14-year-old boy in the tribal region of Bajaur, in north-west Pakistan, says he was detained by Taliban forces who tried to turn him into a suicide bomber. The boy is now in army hands.

He provided a detailed account to BBC correspondent Orla Guerin. His story cannot be independently verified.

There were five people who came after me from a place in Bajaur. They tricked me. They told me they were going to behead my father.

I went with them but my father wasn't there. They tied me up.

They said: 'You have two choices. We will behead you, or you will become a suicide bomber.' I refused.

The BNP scaremongering against Islam and Muslims?

Allahu Akbar – The enemy within

Events in the United States of America at a military base in Texas show how dangerous the wrong kind of policies of the so called politically correct elites can be. Major Nidal Malik Hasan, a psychiatrist working for the US Army, shouted Allahu Akbar (God is Great) and opened fire and killed thirteen people who were caught totally unprepared.

The British National Party opposes the illegal military intervention of Western forces in Islamic countries. We have rejected the said intervention from the very beginning because we see it as neo-colonialism and by the same token the British National Party reclaims the fundamental right of the British peoples of being the masters of their own destiny in Britain.

Swiss Muslims open mosque doors

Muslims in many parts of Switzerland have invited the public into mosques - three weeks before a vote on whether to ban the construction of minarets.

Muslim organisations say they hope their open day will counter what they say are fears and prejudices.

The conservative group that initiated the vote - the largest party in the Swiss parliament - says minarets are a symbol of Muslim political power.

Opinion polls suggest the proposed ban will be rejected by voters.

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Pair guilty of £15 debt murders

Two teenagers face life sentences after being convicted of murdering a girl and her grandmother in a fire in east London as revenge for an unpaid debt.

Jake Sheehan, 19, of Bethnal Green, and David Philip, an 18-year-old from Bow, had denied the charges but were found guilty by a jury at the Old Bailey.

Shannon Vickers, 17, and Pauline Adams, 57, were killed last February.

The home they shared, on the fifth floor of Malmesbury House in Cyprus Street, Bethnal Green, was set alight.

"Sheehan and Philip had been involved in a long-running dispute with Mrs Adams's grandson over the debt," said Det Insp Larry Smith of the Metropolitan Police.

"The grandson lived with Mrs Adams and Shannon," he added.

'Callous' attitude

Malaysia withholds 'Allah Bibles'

The Malaysian government has refused to release 10,000 Bibles which it seized because they contained the word Allah to refer to God.

The government, which is dominated by Muslim Malays, claims that the word Allah is Islamic and that its use in Bibles could upset Muslims.

The Roman Catholic Church is challenging the ban in court.

Religion has become highly sensitive in Malaysia, where about two-thirds of the population is Muslim.

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Sex education opt out is reduced

Parents' right to pull their children out of sex education classes in England is being ended once the pupils turn 15.

The change means all pupils will get at least one year of sex and relationship education before their 16th birthday once it becomes compulsory in 2011.

Currently some 0.04% of parents choose to use the opt-out, but that number could grow once it is compulsory.

Under these plans, even faith schools will have to cover areas such as same sex relationships and contraception.

However, governing bodies will still be able to ensure classes reflect the religious ethos of the school.

Israeli physicists supply solar and wind power to Palestinian herders

SUSYA, occupied West Bank (IPS) - Hundreds of impoverished Palestinian herders and farmers living in caves and tents in a remote area of the Palestinian West Bank have been provided free electricity due to the ingenuity of two Israeli physicists.

The goat and sheep farming community of Susya, comprising clans of about 25 large families, had until recently followed a centuries-old tradition of subsistence farming without access to electricity.

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But following the intervention of Comet-ME, one of 12 finalists of the BBC's World Challenge, a global competition aimed at projects showing enterprise and innovation at a grassroots level, Susya made international headlines.

Feeling grumpy 'is good for you'

n a bad mood? Don't worry - according to research, it's good for you.

An Australian psychology expert who has been studying emotions has found being grumpy makes us think more clearly.

In contrast to those annoying happy types, miserable people are better at decision-making and less gullible, his experiments showed.

While cheerfulness fosters creativity, gloominess breeds attentiveness and careful thinking, Professor Joe Forgas told Australian Science Magazine.

'Eeyore days'

The University of New South Wales researcher says a grumpy person can cope with more demanding situations than a happy one because of the way the brain "promotes information processing strategies".

Emmerich reveals fear of fatwa axed 2012 scene

Roland Emmerich, the director of the 'end of days' disaster movie, had wanted to depict the destruction of Islam's holiest site, but was persuaded not to

He blew up the Empire State Building and the White House in Independence Day, sent a giant monster careering through the heart of Manhattan in Godzilla and destroyed the famous Hollywood sign in The Day After Tomorrow. But it seems there are places even Roland Emmerich will not go - the German film-maker has revealed he abandoned plans to obliterate Islam's holiest site on the big screen for fear of attracting a fatwa.

Mum Defends High Court Fight To Let Son Die

The mother of a chronically ill baby has defended her court battle with the child's father to have his life support machine turned off.

The boy, known only as RB, has congenital myasthenic syndrome, a rare neuromuscular condition which severely limits limb movement and the ability to breathe independently. He has been in hospital since birth.

Doctors want to take the one-year-old off a ventilator which helps him to breathe, but the boy's father, who is separated from the mother, opposes the plan.

The hospital trust which provides his care has taken the case to the High Court.

If the trust wins, it would be the first time a British court has ruled against the wishes of a parent whose child does not suffer from brain damage.

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