Alice Fordham

The militant group that has swept over much of Syria and now Iraq has renamed itself. The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria now wants to be called, simply, "The Islamic State." It's a n...

It's typically a holy month of reflection for Muslims, but Iraqis face a bleak Ramadan this year. Extremists have taken over much of the country and show no sign of easing their fighting.

Minority Sunnis are helping the militants sweeping Iraq's north and west. The support of ordinary Sunnis shows how difficult it will be to reverse the sectarian partition that's already happening.

As Sunni extremists take over much of the north and west of the country, Shiites are fighting back. It brings back memories of the bloody years of sectarian strife that U.S. troops fought to subdue.

Cuba's communist government has allowed the creation of small private businesses in recent years. An estimated 1 million Cubans have taken the plunge, making progress in fits and starts along the way.

The Iraqi prime minister once boasted that he brought stability to the country, but as Iraq looks more like a Sunni vs. Shiite battlefield, critics say Nouri al-Maliki's policies have led to the mess.

NPR's Alice Fordham speaks to Melissa Block about the extremist militant onslaught in Iraq, as well as the possibility of escalating violence there.

There are reports of Iraqi government troops just fleeing, dropping their weapons and shedding their uniforms. The U.S. spent a lot of time and money training Iraqi forces.

Sunni Islamist militants have seized control of the Iraqi cities of Mosul and Tikrit and appear to be preparing an assault on Baghdad. Americans fought and died trying to prevent that from happening.

For more on House Majority Leader Eric Cantor's surprising primary loss, Audie Cornish speaks with former Republican Rep. Tom Davis.

The militant advance in Iraq continued south as hundreds of thousands flee Mosul, a northern city which recently fell. NPR's Alice Fordham reports from northern Iraq on what the refug...

An extremist group that has taken over large parts of Syria has stormed into the major Iraqi city of Mosul. There are concerns that a crucial oil refinery could fall into their hands too.

Extremists have taken over most of the Iraqi city of Mosul, a key commercial hub. Hundreds of thousands are fleeing as the group, known as ISIS, is capturing weapons caches and government buildings.

Some Syrians fear that after the elections, President Bashar Assad's regime will get worse. They suspect that truces will evaporate, arrests will increase and more of the country will be partitioned.

Despite the civil war, Syria is holding a presidential election on Tuesday. President Bashar Assad is expected to win another seven-year term.

Tuesday's elections in Syria are sure to result in another term for President Bashar Assad, even as the international community says his regime is responsible for the deaths of tens of thousands of civilians.

The opposition is railing against his inevitable triumph.

At a demonstration Friday by some of the ...

Syrian refugees in Lebanon are already voting in an election that's seen as Bashar Assad's rigged bid for legitimacy. Many refugees believe that if they don't vote, they'll never be allowed back home.

The country's spectacular antiquities are being plundered by rebels, organized criminal groups and desperate civilians. Many items go across the border to Lebanon.

The Holiday Inn was a landmark that towered over glittering Beirut in the 1970s. The Lebanese civil war ravaged the city and the hotel. The debate over the hotel's carcass carries on to this day.

Iraq's election didn't make a huge splash in the U.S., but the results of the April 30 vote were released this week, and the outcome has important ramifications for Iraq and the wider region. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's party came out way ahead.

Iraq has faded from the American radar, ...