While there are pockets of antipathy towards Muslims, an overwhelming majority of Australians don't share it, writes Professor Riaz Hassan from Flinders University.
Revellers across Brazil begin Carnival celebrations, taking to the streets to dance and blow off steam at a time of economic angst and fury with politicians over a sprawling corruption scandal.
A firebrand monk who helped stoke sectarian conflict in Myanmar throws his support behind the controversial Dhammakaya sect in Thailand, which is currently at odds with law enforcement over money laundering allegations.
Senior leaders in the Catholic Church tell the royal commission into child sexual abuse that mandatory celibacy is a contributing factor, but not the cause of abuse. See how their second day of testimony unfolds in our live blog.
The WA Premier and Opposition Leader clash over voluntary euthanasia and the Safe Schools program during a public question and answer session organised by the Australian Christian Lobby in the lead-up to the state election.
Florence's famed Duomo is cleaning up its act, removing centuries of graffiti from the cathedral dome interior and letting new visitors leave their mark digitally instead.
About 1,000 people, many waving Palestinian flags, gather at Sydney's Town Hall saying they are embarrassed by the warm reception given to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Down Under.
Eileen Piper has spent more than two decades waiting for the Melbourne Archdiocese to accept one of its priests abused her only daughter, Stephanie, who later committed suicide.
The Archbishop of Sydney, Anthony Fisher, tells a royal commission the response by Catholic Church leaders to allegations of child sexual abuse amounted to "criminal negligence".
Catholic Archbishops fronting the royal commission into child sex abuse admit the Church's response was a failure in leadership and culture, asking "what can possibly have gone wrong" to have led to so many offences. See how their first day of testimony unfolded in our blog.
Five of Australia's Catholic archbishops will give evidence today in the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. This is who they are, what they've said and their relationship to Cardinal George Pell.
Money was at the heart of a lot of the debate on the WA election hustings today, with barbs traded over hospital funding, the sale of Western Power and the spending of taxpayers' money in general.
A secrecy culture of "don't ask, don't tell" could explain allegations of child sex abuse within a religious order with one of the highest numbers of alleged abusers, the royal commission is told.
A report into the Catholic compensation scheme for abuse victims, which has been suppressed by the Church for more than a year, will be tabled at the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses into Child Sexual Abuse this week.
A group of Islamic leaders in Perth urges its followers not to vote for the Liberal Party in the state election following the party's preference deal with Pauline Hanson's One Nation.
Malcolm Turnbull rebukes the United Nations for adopting "one-sided resolutions" critical of Israel, as Benjamin Netanyahu arrives in Australia for the first official visit by an Israeli prime minister.
US President Donald Trump delivers his first public condemnation of anti-Semitic incidents in the United States after a new spate of bomb threats to Jewish community centres around the country and massive vandalism in a Jewish cemetery.
After decades of persecution, Copts hoped the Arab Spring might signal a turnaround in their fortunes. For many, though, life remains precarious, and there are calls for Australia to accept and help them.
A new helpline is being launched in Australia today to support parents of troubled Muslim youths, and will address everything from bullying to drug abuse and even radicalisation.
Thai police searching a sprawling temple complex for the fugitive founder of a controversial Buddhist sect find his hospital bed filled with pillows, arranged to resemble a person sleeping under a blanket.