Middle East
Iraqi Drama in Crisis
Artistic freedom has come with a high price for theatre groups and actors across the country.
Men Rue Lifting of Female Travel Ban
Conservative male attitudes frustrate women’s desire to travel abroad.
Recovering Raided Treasures
A group of artists are determined to track down paintings and sculptures looted from the capital’s flagship arts centre.
Capital Rides Property Boom
Lifting Saddam’s restrictions on who could own land in Baghdad has created an unexpected surge in prices.
Children Held for Ransom
Crack police unit struggles to stop gangsters grabbing children to extort payment from their families.
Ethnic Groups Tussle Over Northern City
Turkomans and Arabs object to Kurdish plans to draw oil-rich Kirkuk into a separate autonomous region of Iraq.
Taming the Islamists in the North
Ansar al-Islam and Komal may have been cast to the winds, but some members remain committed to the Islamic cause.
Dinar Surges in Value
The rising price of the new currency fuels hopes of a strong economic future.
Internet Demand Spirals
Iraqis can’t wait to get online as era of web censorship comes to an end.