The Aceh province of Indonesia passed a bill extending sharia law for adultery, rape and homosexuality. The maximum punishment is stoning to death for adultery. Surveys suggest that the majority of Indonesian Muslims observe a moderate form of the faith, and do not support hardline interpretations of the Qur'an.

A Malaysian court has ordered an unmarried couple to be caned for trying to have sex in a car. The couple already paid a fine of $1400 US each, and are appealing the caning as they plan to marry soon.

For the death of his 37-year-old wife, Muzzammil Hassan, 45, is scheduled to be tried in January on a charge of second-degree murder. His lawyer announced on Friday that a psychiatric evaluation is under way and extreme emotional disturbance is a likely defence.

The website called, "Flying While Muslim," launched this week to support the six innocent American Muslim males who were removed from a US Airways flight and arrested in 2006. The six imams say they were victims of racial and religious profiling.

Secretary Clinton swore in America's first Special Representative to Muslim Communities, Farah Pandith, in a special ceremony this week. Pandith worked in the State Department's Bureau of European Affairs prior to her new appointment. She was born in Srinagar, India and moved to the United States at the age of one.

The Jerusalem Post reported a high occurance of mixed dating between young Arab men and Jewish girls in a northern neighborhood of Jerusalem which has resulted in communal anger and even some violent outbursts. A Jewish group of some 35 volunteers is looking to stop such interactions by organizing neighborhood watches and warning girls of potential dangers.

On behalf of a Muslim teenager, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a suit against Abercrombie & Finch for not hiring the girl because she was told her hijab would violate the company's secretive but strict "look policy."

Shazia Riaz is Associate Editor of Altmuslimah.