Mr Putin, who was speaking to workers at a Russian missile factory, added, "I am concerned by the ease with which decisions to use force are taken in international affairs. This is becoming a persistent tendency in US policy," he added.

However, in one of the most public clashes between the two men to date, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said it was unacceptable to make such historical comparisons, warning such remarks risked stirring up even more trouble. Mr Medvedev sharply rebuked Mr Putin, saying, "Under no circumstances is it acceptable to use expressions which essentially lead to a clash of civilisations. Such as [talking of] a 'crusade' and so on."

The Office for National Statistics has defended the wording of the census. While 61% of the poll's respondents said they did belong to a religion, 65% of those surveyed answered "no" to the further question: "Are you religious?" Among respondents who identified themselves as Christian, fewer than half said they believed Jesus Christ was a real person who died, came back to life and was the son of God. Another 27% said they did not believe that at all, while 25% were unsure.

In the last census in 2001, 72% of people were classed as Christians - a figure which is much higher than other surveys. The BHA believes people might tick "yes" to the census question on religion for reasons of cultural identity. The chief executive of the BHA, Andrew Copson, is running a national campaign encouraging non-religious people to state their unbelief clearly on their census forms. He said: "This poll is further evidence for a key message of the Census Campaign - that the data produced by the census, used by local and national government as if it indicates religious belief and belonging, is in fact highly misleading."

The think tank Theos, which undertakes research into religious matters, says attempting to measure cultural affiliation to religion - rather than actual, regular practice - is a good idea, as it shows the broad values society shares. It also disputes the BHA's assertion that the collected data is used for political purposes.

Countries including the US, UK and France are continuing strikes after the UN authorised action to protect Libyan civilians from government forces. Colonel Gaddafi has been fighting a rebellion that broke out last month. US officials have said Colonel Gaddafi himself is not a target of the air strikes, which they say are aimed at his armed forces and air defence systems. A Libyan official said 64 people had been killed in strikes at the weekend, but the figure could not be verified.

Earlier at the Pentagon, US Navy Vice Admiral William Gortney said the coalition had control of the air space between Tripoli and the main rebel stronghold, Benghazi. "The no-fly zone is effectively in place," he said. He added that ground forces moving on rebel positions were also open to attack. The US says a Libyan government claim that armed forces were observing a ceasefire "isn't true or has been immediately violated".

Qatar is to send four planes to join the coalition enforcing the UN-mandated no-fly zone, the US and France have said. The move would make Qatar the first Arab country to play an active part in the campaign against Colonel Gaddafi, who has been battling a month-long revolt. Other Arab countries are also preparing to join the campaign against Colonel Gaddafi, Vice Admiral Gortney said.

The only party with a strong presence in the Mansfeld-Sudharz district, as in many parts of Saxony-Anhalt, is the far-right National Democratic Party (NPD). Party supporters have hung up posters in nearly every town with slogans such as "A slap in the face for political fat cats" and "Out with criminal foreigners." Internal NPD emails reveal the significance party members place on the upcoming election in Saxony-Anhalt. Matthias Heyder, the party's leading candidate for the state, calls it an election that will "determine the fate of the entire national movement in Germany."

The far-right party already has a presence in the regional parliaments of the eastern states Saxony and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and is looking to gain a foothold in a third. The only way to achieve that goal, according to one internal email, is a "battle of resources." Accordingly, the cash-strapped party is pouring nearly all available funding into the east, with one of its most important members taking charge of the campaign -- Holger Apfel, NPD leader in the parliament of the neighboring state of Saxony. Current polls show the extremist party getting 5 percent of the vote, the threshold that a party has to reach to hold seats in parliament.

"Entry into the state parliament would mean the NPD had achieved its goal," says David Begrich from the association Miteinander ("Together") that works to promote democracy and combat right-wing extremism in Saxony-Anhalt, explaining that the party would now be represented in the parliaments of three states. Now it's up to politicians from the democratic parties, Begrich says, to show what they stand for and why it's worth going to vote. If not, he warns, the other parties will be left standing there sheepishly on March 20, wondering how the far-right managed to triumph again.

The "Jasmine Revolution."

Activists on the Internet chose the term, inspired by the Tunisia rebellion of the same name, for a series of demonstrations in which the Chinese were to take to the streets to demand more freedom of expression. So far, however, such upheavals exist purely in the nervous minds of the country's leaders. Nevertheless, it is telling how Chinese party leaders relate to the fates of the Arab autocrats who have already been ousted. They have increased surveillance of their own people with the help of a massive security operation of a magnitude the People's Republic has not experienced since the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

Reacting to the unrest in the Middle East, Communist Party leader Hu called together top officials from the provinces and the military for a retreat in February. Vice President Xi Jinping, who is expected to replace Hu soon, was also present. The subject of the meeting was how the authorities can prevent social conflict and guide public opinion on the Internet in the desired direction.

The group came to the conclusion that unrest and demonstrations of the sort that have taken place in North Africa must not be allowed to happen in the first place. Since then, words like "jasmine" have been completely blocked on the Internet. Even a traditional folk song that sings the praises of the fragrant blossoms of the "Mo Li Hua" ("Jasmine Flower") fell victim to the censors. The authorities also placed more than 100 dissidents, attorneys and activists under house arrest.

The Chinese security forces also harassed a few representatives of the Western media in their apartments, using nighttime visits to intimidate reporters into behaving "cooperatively." Otherwise, they warned, the authorities would refuse to extend their work permits at the end of the year. The regime believes that heightened pressure on Western media will close the last few gaps in the Chinese wall of censorship, with which the giant country is successfully sealing itself off from the rest of the world. Twitter, Facebook and YouTube have long been blocked.

China's strongest condemnation yet of assaults on the forces of Libya's leader Muammar Gaddafi appeared in the People's Daily, the mouthpiece of the ruling Communist Party, and showed how the conflict could become a fresh point of contention between Beijing and Washington.

The paper accused the United States and its allies of violating international rules, although China had refrained from blocking the United Nations Security Council decision last week that effectively authorised the air attacks. The People's Daily likened the assault on Libyan sites to the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, and suggested it followed a pattern of Western overreaching in other countries' affairs.

"The blood-soaked tempests that Iraq has undergone for eight years and the unspeakable suffering of its people are a mirror and a warning," said the commentary in the People's Daily. "The military attacks on Libya are, following on the Afghan and Iraq wars, the third time that some countries have launched armed action against sovereign countries," it said.

"It should be seen that every time military means are used to address crises, that is a blow to the United Nations Charter and the rules of international relations."

DEATH TOLL

The death toll is difficult to forecast. A total of 8,649 people were confirmed dead by Japan's National Police Agency as of midday on Monday (11pm ET on Sunday), while 13,262 were reported missing.

NUMBER OF PEOPLE EVACUATED

A total of 349,349 people are in shelters around the country as of midday (0300 GMT) Monday after being evacuated, the National Police Agency of Japan said. The government expanded the evacuation area around a quake-stricken nuclear plant in northeastern Japan to a 20-km (12 miles) radius from 10 km on March 12. Since then, around 177,500 residents have evacuated from the zone. The government has also told people within 30 km of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear complex, some 240 km north of Tokyo, to stay indoors.

HOUSEHOLDS WITHOUT ELECTRICITY

A total of 242,927 households in the north were without electricity as of Sunday evening, Tohuku Electric Power Company says.

HOUSEHOLDS WITHOUT WATER

At least 1.04 million households in 11 prefectures were without running water as of Saturday, the Health Ministry says.

NUMBER OF BUILDINGS DAMAGED

At least 14,637 buildings have been completely destroyed, the National Police Agency of Japan says on Monday.

IMPACT ON ECONOMY

The World Bank, citing private estimates, said the cost of Japan's earthquake and tsunami could range from $122 billion to $235 billion, or 2.5 to 4 percent of GDP. It said the disaster would hurt Japan's GDP growth through 2011.

Gulf Arab states reject Iranian and other foreign interference in their internal affairs and said Qatar and the United Arab Emirates were taking part in Libyan military operations for "safety and security." Asked about UAE and Qatari involvement in a Western military operation against Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi, he said: "We are within the coalition for safety and security according to the UN resolution."

The Republican from Youngsville has introduced a bill that would establish a legislative commission to study his plan for a state currency. He is also drafting a second bill that would require state government to accept gold and silver coins as payment for taxes and fees. If the state treasurer starts accepting precious metals as payment, Bradley said that could prod the private sector to follow suit - potentially allowing residents to trade gold for groceries.

"I think we're in the process of inflating a dollar bubble that could be very devastating," said Bradley, a freshman legislator elected in November's GOP tide. "The idea is once the study commission finishes its work, then we could build on top of the hard-money currency with an actual State Tender Act that will basically [issue currency] in correspondence to precious metals stored in the state treasury." Bradley's bill has yet to attract any co-sponsors among his fellow Republicans.

The results mean Japan faces a food safety scare on top of the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis. Almost 300 engineers have been battling to bring six reactors under control at the plant, 240km north of Tokyo, since their cooling systems were knocked out 10 days ago by the tsunami. Meanwhile the IAEA, the UN atomic watchdog, said on Sunday that there had been some positive developments at the Fukushima plant in the past 24 hours, though the overall situation remained "very serious".

The government halted shipments of raw milk from Fukushima prefecture and spinach from Ibaraki prefecture. It will decide tomorrow whether to widen the freeze. Officials admitted that some food with radioactivity above the safety limit might be on shop shelves. Tests also showed slightly elevated radioactivity in Tokyo's drinking water although the measurement was still 100 times below the legal safety limit.

Experts and the Japanese government said the levels of radioactivity recorded in milk and spinach did not pose an immediate threat to human health. "I have never let my children drink much milk but at the current level of concentration I would have no hesitation in letting them consume spinach and tap water," said Tetsuro Fukuyama, the deputy chief cabinet secretary. An average consumer would have to drink such milk for a year to get the equivalent radioactive dose to a single CT scan.

Protests in Saudi Arabia are banned however it was the third protest this month by families and activists demanding information on the fate of people held for years on security and terrorism charges. Two-thousand special forces and 200 police vehicles were drafted in as the Saudi Arabian authorities showed their determination to prevent the spread of unrest inspired by uprisings across the Arab world.

Meanwhile Bahrain's main opposition groups have also eased their conditions for talks to end a crisis that has drawn in neighbouring Gulf armies and raised tensions in the oil exporting region. The groups, led by Bahrain's largest Shi'ite Muslim opposition party Wefaq, called on security forces to free all those detained, end their crackdown and ask Gulf Arab troops to leave so talks could begin.

A statement released by the party said: 'Prepare a healthy atmosphere for the start of political dialogue between the opposition and the government on a basis that can put our country on the track to real democracy and away from the abyss.'

The missiles targeted Libyan command and control centres, radar installations and surface-to-air missile sites. Libyan officials said the attacks were "barbaric" and causing civilian casualties. British Tornado GR4 jets from RAF Marham were poised to attack more sites with Storm Shadow missiles, which can be fired 200 miles from their target.

The Prime Minister held an emergency meeting with senior ministers and military officers. After a Cobra meeting he said British forces were in action over Libya. French combat jets were the first to attack on Saturday as they destroyed four tanks at 4.45pm - hours after 19 world leaders gathered in Paris to agree multinational action.

The Libyan dictator tried to wrong-foot the international community by declaring a ceasefire, while his forces kept up an onslaught on the rebel stronghold of Benghazi. In Paris Mr Cameron and Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, led a summit that agreed to "all necessary action" in a move backed by the United States, a series of European countries and, crucially, Arab nations. Colonel Gaddafi was told to quit as:

• The first confirmed targets were an airport near Tajoura, on the outskirts of Tripoli, and an airbase close to rebel-held Misurata

• Up to 16 RAF Tornado ground attack planes were prepared to scramble from RAF Marham to destroy Libya's air defence system while eight Typhoons are set to patrol over Libya

• After returning from Paris, Mr Cameron held a meeting of the Cobra emergency committee with senior ministers and the Chief of the Defence Staff

• US forces - a total of 25 vessels - launched Tomahawk missiles in the Mediterranean

• Planes from Canada, Denmark and Spain arrived at bases near Libya and more air power was expected

• Russia broke international consensus to say it "regretted" action against Col Gaddafi

• The Libyan dictator's forces shelled rebel positions, leading to civilians fleeing from Benghazi

Jim Murphy, the shadow defence secretary, said: "This is a moment of truth for the international community to end the slaughter of innocents in Libya. The Government is right to take strong and urgent action. Gaddafi has no one to blame but himself. Britain should stand in solidarity with the Libyan people."

He said Libya would exercise its right to self defence under article 51 of the United Nations charter, adding the Mediterranean and North Africa were now a battleground. "The interests of countries face danger from now on in the Mediterranean because of this aggressive and mad behaviour," he said.

"Unfortunately, due to this (action), marine and air targets, whether military or civilian, will be exposed to real danger in the Mediterranean, since the area of the Mediterranean and North Africa has become a battleground because of this blatant military agression."

He also called on Arab, Islamic, African, Latin American and Asian countries to "stand by the heroic Libyan people to confront this aggression, which will only increase the Libyan people's strength, firmness and unity". Shortly after Gaddafi's speech, a message on state television said Libya had decided to end its efforts to stop illegal immigration to Europe, citing a security source.

The food was taken from farms as far as 65 miles (100 kilometers) from the stricken plants, suggesting a wide area of nuclear contamination. The tainted milk was found 20 miles (30 kilometers) from the plant, a local official said. The spinach was collected from six farms between 60 miles (100 kilometers) and 75 miles (120 kilometers) to the south of the reactors.

Those areas are rich farm country known for melons, rice and peaches, so the contamination could affect food supplies for large parts of Japan. More testing was being done on other foods, Edano said in Tokyo, and if tests show further contamination then food shipments from the area would be halted.

"Initially, the biggest problem was treating all the people who had been caught up in the tsunami for hypothermia," he told The Sunday Telegraph in the hectic halls of the hospital. "After that, we were treating broken bones, cuts and bruises. But now, more than a week after the earthquake, many people are living in schools and gymnasiums," he said. "We are seeing cases of pneumonia, asthma and chronic bronchitis. There are also a lot of chronically ill patients who cannot get the medicines that they need, such as for diabetes."

With their defences lowered, the elderly are falling prey to enteritis, colitis, diarrhea and vomiting, Dr Yamai said. An estimated 452,000 people are living in evacuation facilities, while the death toll has surpassed 7,000. That makes the disaster the worst to befall Japan since the end of the war. So great is the strain on resources here that the Miyagi Prefectural Government has announced that it will permit the burial of victims without cremation.

Doctors and hospital staff are doing all they can to provide care to those most at risk, but they are short of medicines and personnel, while emergency services have not even been able to reach some of the most remote towns in the region.

Ishinomaki has no power, no running water, no fuel, precious little in the way of medicines. For the elderly, it also holds out little hope of a return to normality in the near future.