Middle East

World News

3 Iran-Americans Receive Lengthy Prison Sentences In Iran

5:59am October 26, 2016

by Michele Kelemen

A third Iranian-American has received a harsh prison sentence in Iran — in what activists say is an attempt by hardliners to undermine the Iranian president's efforts to reach out to the West.

A migrant holds onto a rope during a rescue operation some eight nautical miles off Libya's Mediterranean coastline earlier this month.

World News

U.N. Says 2016 Will Be Deadliest Year Ever For Migrants Crossing The Mediterranean

8:30pm October 25, 2016

by Merrit Kennedy

That's despite far fewer people making the treacherous passage. The U.N. says smugglers set people off on mass embarkations on "flimsy inflatable rafts that often do not make the journey."

World News

U.N. Official Says War Crimes Are Being Committed In Aleppo

6:44am October 25, 2016

David Greene speaks with Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, the U.N. high commissioner for human rights, who called what is taking place in the besieged Syrian city of Aleppo, "crimes of historic proportions."

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Near Mosul, Some Residents Flee ISIS, Others Stay And Fight With ISIS

7:45pm October 24, 2016

by Alice Fordham

The Iraqi army is battling its way through villages south of Mosul. Residents who fled say some local tribes are still with ISIS, and will be ready to fight to the death.

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Migrants from Jalabad, Afghanistan, drink tea at the camp on Monday as authorities began processing and evicting residents.

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PHOTOS: France Begins Evicting Thousands Of Migrants From Notorious 'Jungle' Camp

5:59pm October 24, 2016

by Merrit Kennedy

French security forces intend to dismantle the squalid camp that, despite its poor living conditions, has housed thousands of people who fled wars or poverty for a better life in Europe.

World News

Iraqi Fighters Continue Push Toward ISIS Held City Of Mosul

4:29pm October 24, 2016

A coalition of various Iraqi fighters with assistance from the U.S. are continuing to push toward the ISIS held city of Mosul. Is the fight going according to plan? NPR's Kelly McEvers speaks to Jessica Lewis McFate, research director at the Institute for the Study of War, about how it is going so far.

Palestinian Saed Karzoun, 31, is a motivational speaker who preaches positive thinking in the West Bank. He acknowledges it's a hard sell, with many Palestinians saying they are depressed about the present and pessimistic about the future.

World News

A Palestinian Preaches Positive Thinking To A Tough Crowd: His Own People

5:07pm October 23, 2016

by Daniel Estrin

Motivational speaker Saed Karzoun has a tough sell in the West Bank as he tries to preach optimism and self-empowerment at a time when pessimism runs high among Palestinians.

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As Calais Migrant Camp Closes, Refugees Not Seeking Asylum In France Look To U.K.

8:44am October 23, 2016

France will begin dismantling a migrant camp in Calais tomorrow. It's called "the Jungle" and it's home to thousands of migrants.

Iraqi pro-government forces hold a position on the frontline on Friday near the village of Tall al-Tibah, some 20 miles south of Mosul, during an operation to retake the hub city from the Islamic State group jihadists.

World News

Iraqi Forces Shaken By ISIS Resistance In Fight For Mosul

5:44pm October 22, 2016

by Alice Fordham

In the first week of an Iraqi offensive to retake Mosul, the effort is slow and fraught with danger. While officials say the operation is on track, citizens who've witnessed the casualties disagree.

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World News

The Dueling Narratives In The Fight For Mosul

5:11pm October 22, 2016

In Iraq, the battle for control of Mosul, the country's second largest city, has been raging for almost a week. There are differing narratives coming from the Pentagon and the front lines.