Today's Melbourne Herald Sun reports that a court in Afghanistan has told a man that he could face the death penalty for converting from Islam to Christianity. Supreme Court judge Ansarullah Mawlavizada said the suspect, Abdur Rahman, who was arrested after members of his family informed police of his conversion, would be charged with abandoning Islam. Sharia law calls for the death sentence for Muslims who abandon their religion. Article 3 of Afghanistan's 2004 Constitution provides that "no law can be contrary to the beliefs and provisions of the sacred religion of Islam."
UPDATE: The United States on Monday said that it was closely monitoring Rahman's trial, and urged Afghan authorities to deal with the case transparently and according to the rule of law.
