100 Women: The woman who decides if men can take a second wife Image copyright Joshua Paul for the BBC Islamic law, also known as Sharia, is often associated by critics with harsh punishments and hardline attitudes. But one of Malaysia's first female Sharia high court judges says her role gives her an opportunity to protect women in the Muslim-majority nation. Judge Nenney Shushaidah presides over five trials a day and can hear up to 80 cases a week. The use of Sharia is growing in Malaysia. Under a dual-track legal system, thousands of Muslims use it to settle moral and family matters. Non-Muslims are required to follow secular laws that deal with the same matters. Malaysia practises a moderate form of Islam but conservative attitudes have been on the rise. Rights activists were outraged by the recent caning of two Malaysian women convicted of attempting to have lesbian sex, and say Sharia is often misused. Judge Shushaidah passes judgment on everything from financial cases to ..

Melbourne 'terror plot': Three held over 'chilling' gun plan, police say Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Police said the men had planned to target a crowded area in Melbourne Australian police say they have arrested three men who were plotting to commit a terror attack in Melbourne. The group had been attempting to source a semi-automatic rifle to kill as many people as possible in a crowded place, authorities said. The suspects - aged 21, 26 and 30 - were allegedly inspired by the Islamic State group. There was no ongoing threat to the public, said Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton. Mr Ashton said the men had not settled on a location for the alleged attack, but their planning had "escalated" in recent days. "There was a view towards a crowded place, a place where maximum people would be attending, to be able to kill, we allege, as maximum an amount of people as possible," he told reporters on Tuesday. Earlier this month, a knife-wielding attacker killed..

Maldives-China deal 'one-sided', says ex-president Nasheed Image copyright EPA Image caption Ibrahim Mohamed Solih became the Maldives' new president on Saturday The new Maldives government is considering pulling out of a free trade agreement with China, a top leader from the islands' governing alliance says. "The free trade agreement is very one-sided... the numbers don't match," ex-president Mohamed Nasheed told the BBC. The Maldives' parliament would not approve the law required for the trade deal to come into force, he added. The comments come days after Mr Nasheed's ally Ibrahim Mohamed Solih became the Maldives' new president. Mr Nasheed - a senior advisor to President Solih - was barred from contesting the September elections. Surprise victory for Maldives opposition Read more about the Maldives here There has been no immediate response from China to the latest comments, but a week ago the Chinese embassy in the capital Male rejected a s..

Wombat poop: Scientists reveal mystery behind cube-shaped droppings Image copyright EPA Image caption The Australian native produces up to 100 cube-shaped poops a night Scientists say they have uncovered how and why wombats produce cube-shaped poo - the only known species to do so. The Australian marsupial can pass up to 100 deposits of poop a night and they use the piles to mark territory. The shape helps it stop rolling away. Despite having round anuses like other mammals, wombats do not produce round pellets, tubular coils or messy piles. Researchers revealed on Sunday the varied elasticity of the intestines help to sculpt the poop into cubes. "The first thing that drove me to this is that I have never seen anything this weird in biology. That was a mystery," Georgia Institute of Technology's Patricia Yang said. Why a faecal transplant could save your life Secrets of toughest creatures revealed 'Giant wombats made annual migration' After studying the digestive tracts..

China tycoon Yu Minhong caught up in sexism row Image copyright REUTERS/Jason Lee Image caption Yu Minhong, chairman and president of New Oriental The education billionaire Yu Minhong has courted controversy with comments he made about Chinese women on Sunday. The founder of the New Oriental Group claimed during an education forum that Chinese women were partly responsible for declining moral standards in the country. "Chinese women pick men based on their ability to make money and they don't care if they are good people," Mr Yu told the conference. "Chinese women's depravity has led to the nation's depravity." You may also be interested in: Victoria's Secret in transgender apology Burned to death because of a rumour on WhatsApp The ultimate 'pushy parent' goes viral A video of him making these remarks was widely shared on the Chinese social media platform Sina Weibo, where he attracted criticism. The video has been watched more than 1.1 million times an..

Preity Zinta: India outrage over Bollywood actress's #MeToo comment Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Preity Zinta has starred as the leading lady in several hit Bollywood films Bollywood actress Preity Zinta has been criticised on social media for making comments perceived to be trivialising the #MeToo movement. She has in turn blamed "bad editing" of her interview for the controversy. The movement, which began in Hollywood a year ago, has seen thousands sharing their stories of sexual harassment. In recent months, #MeToo has been gaining momentum in India with women calling out comedians, journalists, authors, actors and filmmakers. Although Zinta is no longer very active in Bollywood, a few years ago she was at the top of the industry and starred as the leading lady in films with superstars Shahrukh Khan, Salman Khan, Aamir Khan and Hritik Roshan - so there remains a lot of interest in what she says. Her controversial comments were made during a video interview she r..

Nissan plans to oust Carlos Ghosn over 'misconduct' Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Carlos Ghosn is head of the Alliance, which includes Nissan, Renault and Mitsubishi Japanese car giant Nissan has proposed removing chairman Carlos Ghosn from his post over financial misconduct claims. The firm said it had been conducting an internal investigation for several months which showed Mr Ghosn had been under-reporting his pay. "Numerous other significant acts of misconduct" including "personal use of company assets", were also found. "Nissan deeply apologises for causing great concern to our shareholders and stakeholders," the company added. The firm said it had been providing information to the Japanese Public Prosecutors Office and would continue to do so. Nissan said it also planned to oust a senior executive Greg Kelly who had been "deeply involved" in the misconduct. As well as being chairman of Nissan - which owns Britain's biggest car plant in Sunderland ..

What Gujarat attacks on migrants say about India's economy Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Migrant families fled following the attacks that lasted more than a week Tens of thousands of migrant workers fled India's western state of Gujarat in October in the wake of attacks targeting them. The BBC's Nitin Srivastava reports from Himmatnagar town on what led to the violence. "I had to run six miles to catch a bus at midnight," said Ram Pyare, who worked in a factory in the town. The 33-year-old took the bus to the capital, Ahmedabad, and went to the train station - but all the trains were full. It was another eight hours before he had borrowed enough money to buy a ticket to go home to his village in Jaunpur district in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh. He was among the thousands of migrants - estimates range from 50,000 to 80,000 - who fled Gujarat after the attacks. The violence, which lasted for more than a week, began after a migrant labourer was arrest..

Chinese erotic novelist jailed for 10 years for gay sex scenes Image copyright iStock Image caption The book featured "male homosexual behaviour... including perverted sexual acts like violation and abuse" A Chinese writer has been given a 10 year sentence for writing and selling a novel which featured gay sex scenes. The writer, identified as Liu, was jailed by a court in Anhui province last month for producing and selling "obscene material". Her novel, titled "Occupation", featured "male homosexual behaviour... including perverted sexual acts like violation and abuse." But her lengthy jail term has sparked protest across Chinese social media. According to the Beijing News, Liu - better known by her online alias Tian Yi - has now filed an appeal to the court. Pornography is illegal in China. 'Too much'On 31 October, Liu was sentenced to jail by the People's Court of Wuhu for making and selling "obscene material" for profit, according to local news site Wuhu news. Ho..