A 23-year-old student in Nigeria has renounced Islam to escape amputation after he was accused in an Islamic court of stealing. Mohammed Ali told the court in the northwest city of Sokoto at the weekend that he would convert to Christianity and that he should be tried under the provisions of the Bible, Rima radio said. “I am not a Muslim,” Ali said. “I am a Christian who only believes in the teachings of the Holy Bible. Therefore, it will not be proper for me to be tried under the provisions of the Sharia (Islamic code). I should be tried under the provisions of the Bible,” he said. The accused said that he was a student and amputating his right arm at the wrist would end his education and render him unemployable. The judge ordered that the accused be remanded in custody until Wednesday when the court will resume hearing his case. – AFP