The Taliban in Afghanistan has threatened to cut off voters’ fingers and attack polling stations in its bid to force Afghans to boycott the presidential elections. One of the so-called “night letters”, pinned up around villages in southern Afghanistan threatened that the Taliban would cut off the noses and ears of those who vote on Thursday. Fingers stained with ink, the sign of having cast a vote, will also be hacked off, the warning said. Read more here
Australia has announced plans to amend its anti-terrorism legislation to give more power to the police. Australia has gradually extended laws on detaining and interrogating terrorism suspects since 2001. There are plans to broaden the definition of a terrorist to include individuals planning to inflict psychological damage as well as those intending to cause physical injury. Read more here
A ban on wearing the all covering burka in France would stem the spread of what French minister Fadela Amara called the “cancer” of radical Islam. The Muslim minister for urban regeneration told the Financial Times newspaper that the head-to-toe body covering and veil represented the “oppression of women, their enslavement and their humiliation.” Read more here
French officials have banned a Muslim woman from swimming in a public pool while wearing a swimsuit that covers her entire body. The woman known only as Carole had previously swum in July in the pool in Emerainville, east of Paris, in the “burkini” – a loose-fitting garment resembling a wetsuit with a hood. The management said this was for hygiene reasons, but she believes it was a political problem. Read more here