Jack Straw said the British Pakistani community must face up to 'Pakistani heritage men thinking it is OK to target white girls' for sexual abuse. Row erupts after former home secretary says grooming for sexual abuse is a particular problem amongst Pakistani men. A row has broken out after the former home secretary Jack Straw said some British Pakistani men regard white girls as “easy... 

"But people's unity should not be limited only by times of trouble. It should become an indispensable part of our national identity and life" Russian Orthodox believers flocked to churches on Friday to attend Christmas service. At least 14,000 people attended Christmas service in Moscow alone, a police spokesman said. “So far, about 14,000 people attended the capital’s churches,... 

Doctors have voiced concerns that swine flu infections could reach “epic proportions” at one hospital, with 18 patients reporting symptoms in just 24 hours. Staff at the George Eliot Hospital in Nuneaton, in Warwickshire, put all the sufferers into isolation in an attempt to contain the outbreak. Four of them, however, were so ill that they had to be moved to the intensive care unit. Medical... 

Uncle Sam wants your money. The avalanche of failing governments in Europe has left many legislators with no choice but to seize European taxpayer savings and pension accounts to cover the governments’ bills. The seizure of pension accounts is easily accomplished in Europe as the state organizes and is in charge of said accounts. The extended recession has left many countries no choice but to get... 

The Campi Flegrei caldera is a supervolcano. While a new eruption here would be more likely to result in the creation of another Vesuvius-like cone, the worst-case scenario could see it obliterating much of life in Europe. Two thousand years ago Mount Vesuvius destroyed Pompeii. Today, a larger, far more deadly supervolcano lurks on the other side of Naples. If it erupts, Campi Flegrei could wipe out... 

Human rights activists say Greek detention camps are full The Greek border with Turkey is among the most popular destinations for illegal immigrants to the European Union. Now a Greek minister says the country wants to build a 206-kilometer fence to keep them out. Greece is planning to build a fence along its border with Turkey to keep out illegal immigrants, Citizen Protection Minister Christos Papoutsis... 

Trees and power lines were brought down last week by freezing rain. Wintry weather in Russia has caused more power blackouts in the Moscow region, threatening further disruption to its busiest airport, Domodedovo. The airport suffered serious disruption last week, with hundreds of flights cancelled and 8,000 people stranded. Although power was restored on Saturday, heavy snow and gales have brought... 

German Islamists predicted hellish torment for the German Chancellor if she does not accept Islam. Is Angela Merkel threatened only by Muslim hell or is she a candidate to hell from a Christian perspective as well? And what is hell? Hieromonk Nikanor (Lepeshev), a teacher of the Khabarovsk Theological Seminary, talked about it with Pravda.ru. If you die without accepting Islam, you will go to hell... 

Middle Eastern leaders who’ve become friendly with the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) could face severe retribution from their local populations if WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is killed or jailed for a lengthy amount of time. That’s because, in a recent interview with Arabic news network Al Jazeera, Assange allegedly warned that he had a document which reveals the identities... 

Waste: A universal phone charger will be available on all new handsets within months after the EC this week released technical specs for a standard design. The days of frantically searching for the correct mobile phone charger are finally set to end with the release of a universal charger compatible with almost all new handsets. The European Commission this week released technical specifications for... 

Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko has left no doubt about who is in control in his country. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko left little doubt about who was in control of his country following last week’s elections. The European Union had hoped for more democracy. But it would appear that many in Belarus are happy with the status quo. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez was one of... 

From 1 January shops will have to stop supplying shoppers with plastic bags A ban on plastic bags is coming into effect in Italy, which has one of the highest rates of consumption of the bags in Europe. The ban begins in shops across Italy on 1 January, with only biodegradable, cloth or paper bags to be offered. Italians use 20 billion plastic bags a year – more than 300 per person. Supporters... 

Mikhail Khodorkovsky, left, and his co-defendant Platon Lebedev, right, talk behind a glass enclosure at a court room in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, Dec. 30, 2010. Khodorkovsky, 47, is in the final year of an eight-year sentence after being convicted of tax evasion, and the new conviction on charges of embezzlement and money laundering could keep him behind bars for several more years. A judge read the... 

Estonia will become the third ex-Communist country to embrace the euro Estonia is just hours away from becoming the 17th member of the eurozone – the first ex-Soviet state to adopt the EU’s single currency. The changeover from the kroon to the euro starts at midnight (2200 GMT) in the small Baltic nation of 1.3m people. Despite market pressure on the eurozone and the bail-outs of Greece... 

Artist Denis Peterson leaves onlookers impressed with his real life scenes showing cities around the world – but gobsmacked when they realise every inch of these pictures are painted. At first glance some of his works look like a simple billboard over a busy urban setting. But on closer inspection the hidden secret is revealed – even the tiny people and obscure reflections on background...