ABRACADABRA

5,500 sex crimes in UK

London: In a disturbing disclosure, more than 5,500 alleged sex crimes were reported to police in UK schools in the last three years with at least a fifth of the offences committed by children.

According to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request by the BBC, police gave a record of sexual offences at schools during last three years, from 2012 to 2015. The figures recorded by FOI request states that these included nearly 4,000 indecent assaults and more than 600 rapes. More than 1,500 victims were under 13 and most were primary and secondary school students. At least a fifth of the offences were carried out by children, so-called “peer-on-peer” abuse. In some cases the victims and suspects were both five years old. According to the latest Department for Education statistics in England, 60 children were permanently excluded for sexual misconduct in schools in 2013/14.

70 crocodile heads in freezer

Sydney: As many as 70 crocodile heads were found dumped and left to rot in a freezer in a small town in northern Australia, media reported. A group of children found the freezer that had been left behind a local shop at a small town called Humpty Doo, 40 km southeast of Darwin in Australia's Northern Territory (NT), reported Xinhua. Authorities said at least 50 crocodile heads - but as many as 70 - had been stuffed inside the freezer. NT national parks and wildlife officers have joined the investigation. Crocodiles are considered a protected species in Australia and anyone convicted of killing the animal faces a fine of $55,779 or five years in jail.

Shaving beard is un-Islamic: fatwa

Muzaffarnagar: Prominent Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband has issued a fatwa that shaving beard is un-Islamic, sparking a debate on the issue. The fatwa comes in response to a query by Mohammmad Irshad and Mohammad Furqan, who run a salon in Badjia-ul-Haq locality of Deoband, where the Islamic seminary is located. The Darul Ifta department which issues religious decrees stated in its fatwa that shaving or trimming beard was against the Sharia law and thus it's un-Islamic to shave or trim beard. Following the fatwa, some of the barbers in nearby areas have stopped shaving work.