IRAQ: The Mess Is Getting Harder to Clear

Iraq may slowly be emerging from a month of the most intense bloodshed since the declared end of the war almost a year ago. But a lull in the fighting in the bloodstained Sunni town of Faluja, west of Baghdad, and a tentative deal with the Sadr Shia militia in the south seem exceedingly fragile. If there is a pause, nobody expects it to last very long.

CULTURE-MIDEAST: The Film Is In the Eye of the Beholder

Palestinians are looking at a new factor in their long and troubled relations with Israelis - Mel Gibson's film 'The Passion of the Christ'.

POLITICS: Activists Crusade Against E-Jihad

For millions of Muslims, invitation to martyrdom is just a mouse click away. So-called "jihad sites" are springing up all over the Internet to offer the latest news, images and slogans of Islamic holy war.

POLITICS-MIDEAST: Summit Fiasco Exposes Divisions

Tunisia's decision to cancel the Arab summit has widely been seen as exposing rifts within the 22-member Arab League.

AFGHANISTAN: NGOs Urge Donors to Focus on Rights, Security, Drugs

Days before an international donors' meeting, aid agencies are insisting the world community answer a call for billions of dollars to help rebuild war-ravaged Afghanistan, whose planned June elections were postponed Sunday because of security concerns.

POLITICS: Islamic Worlds Take a Step Closer

Grudges last a long time in this part of the world, but two regional giants appear on the verge of putting it all behind them.

MIDEAST: Peace Will Get Harder to Find on the Roadmap

Israelis here are just waiting for a wave of retaliatory attacks over the killing of Hamas leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin. The consensus seems to be that some major strikes will come sooner rather than later.

RIGHTS-EGYPT: Silence Cloaks Female Circumcision

Samah still remembers the pain and bleeding that followed an operation her parents forced her to undergo when she was 10 years old. Now 20, she is determined she would never do the same to a daughter.

INT’L WOMEN’S DAY-MIDEAST: Violence Takes a Heavy Toll

Menbere Kifle had planned to return to her two teen-age children in Ethiopia. She had worked as an illegal labourer in Israel for ten years, she had saved some money, and acquired a new passport.

INT’L WOMEN’S DAY: Liberation Touches a Syrian Village

In her shirt and blue jeans, Firial Ibrahim is an unusual sight in this little village. That she runs a successful business is even more unusual.

RIGHTS: Think of the Arabs Within Israel

While world attention is focused on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, a crisis is brewing among Israel's own Arab citizens.

COMMUNICATION: Egyptian Poor Find Virtual Wealth

In a small, unadorned room young Egyptians complete homework assignments on PCs and browse the Internet oblivious of the incessant din of car horns, scratchy music and calls to prayer from a nearby mosque.

EGYPT: Nascent Activism Scores Rare Win

In a rare show of resistance against commercial interests, a newly formed group of anti-corporate globalisation activists in Egypt has forced two of the world's largest mobile phone companies to back down on recent prices hikes.

MIDEAST: Palestinian Media Caught in Internal Crossfire

The editing room of Al Quds educational TV is still riddled with bullet holes. The poor Palestinian broadcaster has little money to replace the equipment damaged in an attack by three armed men earlier this month.

HEALTH-EGYPT: It Looks Like Goodbye to Polio

Egyptian health authorities expect to eradicate polio by the end of the year.

IRAQ: U.S. Sees Al-Qaeda Everywhere

In an apparent attempt to downplay the internal Iraqi dynamics sparking ongoing attacks, the Bush administration has been blaming al-Qaeda for much of the violence.

MIDEAST: Gazians Fear It May Not Be Goodbye

Outside the Israeli settlement of Neve Dekalim a group of Palestinians waited patiently under a corrugated iron roof near an Israeli barrier to cross back to their village.

MIDEAST: ‘Hello, I’m Israeli-Palestinian’

Ali Jarbawi has long seen the creation of two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side, as the best solution to the Middle East conflict. But the professor of political science from Bir Zeit university in the West Bank is not sure any more.

JOURNALISM-MOROCCO: ‘After Tomorrow’ Seeks Press Freedom Today

Moroccan journalist Ali Lmrabet, newly released from prison and as determined as ever, is set to publish a new magazine, 'Apres Demain' (After Tomorrow). He was convicted last year on charges of "insulting the person" of King Mohammad VI.

MIDEAST: Israel Out of Gaza, Not so Fast

Since taking office three years ago, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has made a series of bold political pronouncements, especially for a right-wing prime minister. But questions have arisen over what he meant before, and what he means this time.

MIDEAST: Crime Soars in Palestinian Areas

The suicide attack on a bus in Jerusalem last week brought a sharp setback to fledgling attempts by the Palestinian Authority to reassert control at least over civilian affairs.