Khalil Ahmad Shaheedzada, a conservative lawmaker for the Herat province, said parliament withdrew the legislation because of opposition from religious parties that considered the law un-Islamic.

Egypt's newly-elected Coptic Christian pope said on Monday that he was alarmed at the overtly religious nature of the country's proposed new constitution.

Peers in the House of Lords have expressed overwhelming support for a bill to limit the power of self styled 'religious courts'.

Concerns are rising that gender segregation is on the increase inIsrael, especially in Jerusalem where ultra-Orthodox Jews are growing in numbers and strength.