Here are some important law-and-religion news stories from around the web:

• The Israeli Knesset passed a law formally declaring Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people.
• Religious leaders in Trinidad and Tobago ask the government to uphold traditional norms against same-sex relations in the wake of the country’s high court ruling decriminalizing same-sex offenses.
• The United States prepares to host a three-day gathering on international religious freedom at the State Department in Washington with over 80 countries set to participate.
• Women’s rights organizations sue the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services after it refused to release documents regarding a new religious freedom division.
• Tensions escalate between the Catholic Church and the Nicaraguan government after President Ortega angrily denounces clergy members.
• Religion is front and center in this week’s Pakistani general election as ultra-Islamist groups take aim at parliament seats.