Charges over Allah attacks

Malaysian prosecutors charged three Muslim men yesterday in the firebombing of a church - the first suspects in a string of assaults on places of worship amid a dispute over whether non-Muslims can refer to God as "Allah".

Arson attacks, vandalism and other incidents at 11 churches, a Sikh temple, three mosques and two Muslim prayer halls have been a blow to decades of multiracial harmony in this Muslim-majority country.

The attacks, which started on churches, followed anger among Muslims over a December 31 court verdict that allowed non-Muslims to use "Allah" as a translation for "God" in the Malay language.