Excerpt:
The head of Sweden's Islamic Youth Federation resigned from one of the country's governing parties on Wednesday because of attacks on his religious beliefs.
Yasri Shamsudin Khan, who had been a candidate for the Green Party's executive, quit following criticism over his refusal to shake a female journalist's hand on a local TV program.
"I couldn't shake the female reporter's hand because of my religious beliefs," Khan, 30, told Anadolu Agency in Stockholm following his resignation. "I saluted her by putting my hand on my chest. Because of this move, I was subjected to a lynch-campaign from both inside and outside the party."