RELIGION

Sixteen people were crushed to death and many others severely injured in a stampede at a religious ceremony on Tuesday in India.

The killer of schoolgirl Milly Dowler has converted to Islam and has changed his name in jail, it has been reported.

Sunday marked the Eid al-Adha feast, celebrated throughout the world by millions of Muslims.

Malaysian authorities have banned a controversial guide to Islamic sex published by the notorious Obedient Wives Club, the Wall Street Journal reports.

With the hajj under way, Muslims from around the world reflect on their religion and beliefs, and while Muslims performing the Hajj are mostly adults, the pilgrimage is often explained from a young age.

Historical prejudices about Jews, and their relationship to money and power, are on the rise in the United States, says a nationwide poll.

As the Hajj is underway, millions of Muslims have now reached Saudi Arabia for the annual pilgrimage which is also one of the five pillars of Islam.

23-year-old Dimitri Bogotich, who has been sentenced to 69 months in prison for leading a violent racist group, said he joined the group while serving as a soldier in the Israel Defence Forces.

Life for All, a Lahore-based activist group, has published case studies of all those accused under the blasphemy law in Pakistan's Punjab province.

Occupy protesters camping outside St Paul's Cathedral may stay for good, say the anti-capitalists pitched there.

Hajj is on its way in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, where three million Muslims have gathered for the all-important pilgrimage, one of the five pillars of Islam.

The offices of the French satirical magazine that announced Prophet Muhammad would be the 'editor' of its latest issue has been destroyed by a petrol bomb.

Each year, Muslims around the world flock to Mecca to perform the Haj pilgrimage, one of the five pillars of Islam. Click through the slideshow to see images of pilgrims on their journey to Saudi Arabia this year.

According to media reports, both India and the Philippines have welcomed what they claim is the world's seven billionth person.

The Church of England is threatening to withdraw millions of pounds invested in Internet service providers unless they take action to curb online pornography.

Marzieh Vafamehr, the Iranian actress who was sentenced to 90 lashes and one year in prison after she appeared in a film that criticised the country's regime and has been released from prison.

A sex abuse investigator for the Roman Catholic Church has been convicted of internet paedophile offences, it emerged last night.

Justice was delivered to the Cardy family after 30 years of their nine-year-old daughter's death. A serial child killer and paedophile was sentenced to life after being convicted of murdering a fourth girl on Thursday, according to Reuters.

Canon Dr Giles Fraser, the chancellor of St Paul's Cathedral, has resigned from his post at the church.

Diwali – or Deepavali – is an important Hindu festival and is known as the festival of lights. It is famous for the stunning images of colour and celebrated by one billion Hindus in India and around the world.

It's Diwali time! The "Festival of lights" is back this year bringing fun, frolic and exciting promises. With more than one million British Indians residing in the UK, the festive spirit has always been upbeat. Meanwhile, acknowledging the contribution made by the British Hindus and the British Indian community, the UK Prime Minister David Cameron has extended Diwali wishes.

The Vatican has ordered an inquiry into a series of child abuse cases at a school in Ealing, west London.

A 14-day-old new born has miraculously survived after being trapped for 46hours in debris after the 7.2 earthquake hit Turkey on Sunday.

Adolf Hilter, the German Führer, claimed to have been blinded by a British mustard gas attack during WW I. However, new research now suggests that the dictator's loss of sight was likely caused by a mental disorder known as "hysterical madness".

Wang Yue, a two-year-old Chinese girl, succumbed to her injuries on Friday, after she was run over by two vehicles and left dying by ignorant 18 passing bystanders in Southern China last week, said state-run-media.

The Commonwealth leaders are planning to adopt changes to a 300-year-old historical law on succession by giving the royal daughters the same right as her brothers to ascend the throne, a minister said.

Ancient Egyptian mummies are no more a thing of the past. In a first-of-its-kind scientific study, British scientists will attempt to mummify the body of a recently deceased Devon taxi driver. The project, intended to test out knowledge of a chemical process used 3,000 years ago by the Egyptians, will be carried out on the body of Alan Billis, 61, from Torquay.

Father Laurence Soper, under investigation for child abuse, has jumped bail and may have fled to Italy, say police.

With India's population greater than that of the United States, Indonesia, Brazil, Pakistan and Bangladesh combined, the Roman Catholic church has urged the devout to increase the numbers of Christians in the country.