Middle East

Tens of thousands of anti-government protesters gather in Tahrir Square in Egypt on Feb. 11, 2011, the day Hosni Mubarak stepped down.

A Look At Egypt's Uprising, 5 Years Later

by Merrit Kennedy

Human rights groups say the situation in Egypt is worse now than it was under dictator Hosni Mubarak. But at the time, one activist says, "the sense of possibility was real."

Human Rights Advocate Describes Life For Syrians Under Siege

NPR's Ari Shapiro speaks with Wissam Tarif, who has been working on Syria human rights issues as the Middle East director of Avaaz, an non-profit advocacy group. He spent several years living nearby to Madaya and is in daily contact with people living under siege. He describes what he's hearing from Syrians squeezed between ISIS and airstrikes by Russian and Syrian forces.