Middle East

A craftsman in the old Medina neighborhood of Tunis tries to keep alive the art of making the traditional oud — a guitar-like instrument. An oud is basically a Middle Eastern lute.

Three years after the U.S. military officially withdrew from Iraq, 2,000 U.S. troops are back restoring the old buildings they'd left behind and renewing former contacts with Iraqi officers.

It began with messages sent through an anonymous app. Slowly, the Denver-area girls were lured in, until one day they weren't at school. One girl's dad quickly realized why: They were flying to Syria.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says the massive presidential complex is a symbol of Turkey's growing importance. But as one opposition politician puts it: Only dictators want to live in palaces.

Known for its wealth, the United Arab Emirates has emerged as an ally in the U.S.-led fight against the self-proclaimed Islamic State.

By the summer of 2014, a third of Iraq was under the control of the self-proclaimed Islamic State or ISIS, and people worried the capital might be next. Six months on, that's changed.