preacher
have admitted planning to bomb the London Stock Exchange. The men, British nationals of Bangladeshi and Pakistani origin, were part of a group of nine who
pleaded guilty
to a number of terrorism offences. They were arrested in December 2010 before they could carry out the attack.
Four South African men have been sentenced to 18 years in prison for stabbing and stoning to death more than four years ago a 19-year-old woman, Zoliswa Nkonyana. Karen Allen reports.
Ms Nkonyana, who was openly gay, was stoned and stabbed nine times just a short distance from her home in the township of Khayelitsha, just outside Cape Town. The
magistrate
said the clear motive for the killing was hatred and
homophobia
, and Wednesday's sentence was meant to send out a signal that violence based on sexual orientation would not be tolerated. Although South Africa has one of the most liberal constitutions in the world, rights groups say violent attacks and so-called "corrective rape" targeting lesbians are on the increase.
The village of Wukan in southeast China, which rose up against corruption by local officials in December, has held what residents describe as its first open election. Several thousand villagers filled in ballot papers to choose a committee that will oversee future local votes. Until now, they said their leaders had been selected behind closed doors. The Chinese Communist Party has allowed local elections for several decades, but critics complain that independent candidates stand little chance.