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Inside the Middle East
March 24, 2009
Posted: 1307 GMT

JERUSALEM (CNN) - Arab protesters threw rocks and hurled insults at flag-waving Jewish marchers in Israel's largest Arab city on Tuesday, an event that reflected fresh hostilities between Israel's Arab citizenry and rightist sectors of the Jewish state.

Kareem Khadder/CNN. Residents of the Arab Israeli town of Umm al-Fahm clash with Israeli police<br />
after a right wing Israeli march outside the town turned violent.
Kareem Khadder/CNN. Residents of the Arab Israeli town of Umm al-Fahm clash with Israeli police<br /> after a right wing Israeli march outside the town turned violent.
David Silverman/Getty Images. Right-wing Israeli extremist Baruch Marzel (C) leads a provocative march with flags March 24, 2009 in Umm al-Fahm in northern Israel. Violent clashes broke out between residents of Israel's largest Arab city during of the rally.
David Silverman/Getty Images. Right-wing Israeli extremist Baruch Marzel (C) leads a provocative march with flags March 24, 2009 in Umm al-Fahm in northern Israel. Violent clashes broke out between residents of Israel's largest Arab city during of the rally.

About 100 far-rightists marched in the predominantly Muslim town of Umm al-Fahm, and the angry Arab demonstrations that erupted after the march took place left more than nearly 30 people injured and at least 10 people detained, police said.

Kareem Khadder/CNN. More than 2000 Israeli police were deployed to quell what was predicted to be tension filled demonstration.
Kareem Khadder/CNN. More than 2000 Israeli police were deployed to quell what was predicted to be tension filled demonstration.

Deputy Israeli police commissioner Shahar Ayalon and 15 other policemen were wounded by stone throwing demonstrators, 12 Umm al-Fahm residents were hurt in scuffles with police. Police also said Israeli leftist lawmaker Ilan Ghilon, a member of the Meretz Party, was lightly injured by a tear gas grenade.

The Jewish group, led by Hebron activist Baruch Marzel, petitioned the Supreme Court for permission to stage the march, with the rightists arguing that they were exercising their right to march under Israeli law as Arabs and Muslims have in Israeli towns like Tel Aviv.

But marchers disseminated a particularly hot-button message in Umm al-Fahm that has been setting people off: They demanded that Israeli Arabs should be loyal to the Jewish state, a stance considered insulting by many Israeli Arabs.

Uriel Sinai/Getty Images. Israeli police shoot tear gas as they clash with local Arabs after a provocative march of flags by right-wing Israelis descended into violence, on March 24, 2009 in Umm al-Fahm in northern Israel.
Uriel Sinai/Getty Images. Israeli police shoot tear gas as they clash with local Arabs after a provocative march of flags by right-wing Israelis descended into violence, on March 24, 2009 in Umm al-Fahm in northern Israel.

While the march leaders are not affiliated with right-wing party Yisrael Beytenu, their words about Arab loyalty reflect the concerns among Israeli Arabs about that political movement, which made a strong showing in recent elections.

It has called on Arabs - who it sees as disloyal to Israel - to have their citizenship revoked. And, Avigdor Lieberman, that party's leader, also said that such Arab towns like Umm al-Fahm could become part of a Palestinian state in any peace arrangement.

Leaders in Umm al-Fahm - the scene of past bloody clashes with police and an Islamist hub - warned that the march would provoke violence, and 2,500 police mobilized in the town.

AWAD AWAD/AFP/Getty Images. Arab Israelis (front) run for cover as Israeli riot police fire tear gas in the northern town of Umm Al-Fahm on March 24, 2009. Israeli riot police clashed with residents of Umm Al-Fahm, a bastion of Israeli Arab nationalism where far-right Jewish extremists held a court-sanctioned march. Arabs make up about 20 percent of Israel's population of nearly seven and a half million, and are the descendants of those who remained in Israel following the creation of the Jewish state and the 1948 Arab-Israeli war.
AWAD AWAD/AFP/Getty Images. Arab Israelis (front) run for cover as Israeli riot police fire tear gas in the northern town of Umm Al-Fahm on March 24, 2009. Israeli riot police clashed with residents of Umm Al-Fahm, a bastion of Israeli Arab nationalism where far-right Jewish extremists held a court-sanctioned march. Arabs make up about 20 percent of Israel's population of nearly seven and a half million, and are the descendants of those who remained in Israel following the creation of the Jewish state and the 1948 Arab-Israeli war.

Arab demonstrators waved Palestinian flags, chanted slogans and threw rocks. Police fired tear gas canisters. There were also Israeli Jews in Umm al-Fahm who protested the right-wing march and agreed that the display hurt Jewish-Arab relations.

According to the CIA Factbook, Israel's Jewish population is 76.4 percent. It's non-Jewish population is 23.6 percent, including 16 percent Muslim, 1.7 percent Arab Christians and 1.6 percent Druze.

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March 22, 2009
Posted: 601 GMT

Kurds in Turkey and Iraq celebrate Nowruz, the Kurdish New Year, on March 21. Nowruz, which means 'new day' in Kurdish and Persian marks the first day of Spring.

The Nowruz ceremonies are influenced by the rites and traditions of Iran's Zoroastrians.

Istanbul, Turkey: A Kurdish man performs the Nowruz tradition of 'jumping over the fire' during a gathering to celebrate the New Year. PHOTO BULENT KILIC/AFP/Getty Images
Istanbul, Turkey: A Kurdish man performs the Nowruz tradition of 'jumping over the fire' during a gathering to celebrate the New Year. PHOTO BULENT KILIC/AFP/Getty Images
Diyarbakir, southeast Turkey. PHOTO MUSTAFA OZER/AFP/Getty Images
Diyarbakir, southeast Turkey. PHOTO MUSTAFA OZER/AFP/Getty Images
Baghdad: Iraqis celebrate with a boat ride in the Tigris river off Baghdad's al-Zawraa public park. PHOTO KHALIL AL-MURSHIDI/AFP/Getty Images
Baghdad: Iraqis celebrate with a boat ride in the Tigris river off Baghdad's al-Zawraa public park. PHOTO KHALIL AL-MURSHIDI/AFP/Getty Images

The holiday is also celebrated in Iran, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Albania, Bahrain, Armenia, Georgia, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, as well as among various other Iranian and Turkic peoples in Iraqi Kurdistan, Syria, Lebanon, Pakistan, India, northwestern China, the Caucasus, the Crimea, and the Balkans.

Iraqi Kurds have celebrated the start of of 2079 in the Kurdish solar calendar by lighting a chain of torches up a mountain in northern Iraq.

Filed under: Iraq •Kurds •Pictures •Turkey


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March 20, 2009
Posted: 1106 GMT
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images. San Francisco. A US Marine, who is a veteran of the Iraq war, blocks Market Street in protest of the war March 19, 2009 in San Francisco, California. Five veterans of the Iraq war were arrested along with others after they blocked traffic in protest of the war in Iraq. The group was trying to block traffic for 71 minutes, one second for every soldier who has lost their life in the war.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images. San Francisco. A US Marine, who is a veteran of the Iraq war, blocks Market Street in protest of the war March 19, 2009 in San Francisco, California. Five veterans of the Iraq war were arrested along with others after they blocked traffic in protest of the war in Iraq. The group was trying to block traffic for 71 minutes, one second for every soldier who has lost their life in the war.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images. Washington DC.Demonstrators from Students for a Democratic Society march down the center of 14th Street March 19, 2009 in downtown Washington, DC. About 80 students danced, blocked streets and demonstrated to mark the sixth anniversary of the beginning of the Iraq war. More than 200 police officers kept the demonstrators out of the street with cars, trucks, bicycles, motorcycles and horses.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images. Washington DC.Demonstrators from Students for a Democratic Society march down the center of 14th Street March 19, 2009 in downtown Washington, DC. About 80 students danced, blocked streets and demonstrated to mark the sixth anniversary of the beginning of the Iraq war. More than 200 police officers kept the demonstrators out of the street with cars, trucks, bicycles, motorcycles and horses.
Win McNamee/Getty Images. Washington DC.Veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan protest outside the White House March 19, 2009 in Washington, DC. The veterans protested against 'President Obama's deceptions about his foreign policy,' and to mark the sixth anniversary of the Iraq war.
Win McNamee/Getty Images. Washington DC.Veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan protest outside the White House March 19, 2009 in Washington, DC. The veterans protested against 'President Obama's deceptions about his foreign policy,' and to mark the sixth anniversary of the Iraq war.
EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP/Getty Images. New York City.US anti-war demonstrators stage a rally in New York, March 19, 2009. A small group of demonstrators took to the streets of the US financial capital in a protest march ahead of the March 20 anniversary of the 2003 start of the Iraq war.
EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP/Getty Images. New York City.US anti-war demonstrators stage a rally in New York, March 19, 2009. A small group of demonstrators took to the streets of the US financial capital in a protest march ahead of the March 20 anniversary of the 2003 start of the Iraq war.

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Filed under: Iraq •Pictures


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March 19, 2009
Posted: 825 GMT

Palestinian policewomen train in the West Bank city of Hebron on March 18, 2009. Using female police officers in the field is part of the latest Palestinian Authority effort to help president Mahmud Abbas better control the West Bank and Hamas.

PHOTO AWAD AWAD/AFP/Getty Images
PHOTO AWAD AWAD/AFP/Getty Images
PHOTO AWAD AWAD/AFP/Getty Images
PHOTO AWAD AWAD/AFP/Getty Images
PHOTO AWAD AWAD/AFP/Getty Images
PHOTO AWAD AWAD/AFP/Getty Images

The women completed a European Union-sponsored training program, part of a broader EU makeover of the demoralized and ill-equipped Palestinian law enforcement agencies.

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March 13, 2009
Posted: 907 GMT

From Shirzad Bozorgmehr and Joe Sterling
CNN

(CNN) - When it comes to the sport of wrestling, longtime adversaries Iran and the United States are friendly enemies.

A U.S. freestyle men's wrestling team is in the Islamic republic - where the sport is widely popular - for a prestigious tournament.

Nine American wrestlers are taking part in the Takhti Cup competition, scheduled for March 12-13, according to state Iranian media and USA Wrestling - the national governing body for Olympics wrestling in the United States.

BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images. An Iranian boy stands between the placards of Iran and United States during the opening ceremony of 29th international 'Takhti Cup' wrestling tournament in Tehran on March 12, 2009. A US wrestling team is competing in two-day the tournament in the Iranian capital. Even though Tehran and Washington have been bitter foes since Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution, they have at times put aside their differences in the arena of sports.
BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images. An Iranian boy stands between the placards of Iran and United States during the opening ceremony of 29th international 'Takhti Cup' wrestling tournament in Tehran on March 12, 2009. A US wrestling team is competing in two-day the tournament in the Iranian capital. Even though Tehran and Washington have been bitter foes since Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution, they have at times put aside their differences in the arena of sports.
BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images. Iranian boys hold a placard bearing the US flag to represtent the American team competing in the 29th international 'Takhti Cup' wrestling tournament during the opening ceremony in Tehran on March 12, 2009.
BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images. Iranian boys hold a placard bearing the US flag to represtent the American team competing in the 29th international 'Takhti Cup' wrestling tournament during the opening ceremony in Tehran on March 12, 2009.

"In Iran, wrestling and soccer are the two major sports," said Gary Abbott, director of communications for USA Wrestling in Colorado Springs, Colorado. "They know their wrestling as well as anyone in the world. They treat our athletes like kings."

BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images. US wrestler Michael Tamillow (red) competes with Iranian Hooman Sheida for the Bronze medal of freestyle 96kg competition during the 29th international 'Takhti Cup' wrestling tournament in Tehran on March 12, 2009. A portrait of Iran's supreme leader, Ali Khamenei hangs in the background.
BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images. US wrestler Michael Tamillow (red) competes with Iranian Hooman Sheida for the Bronze medal of freestyle 96kg competition during the 29th international 'Takhti Cup' wrestling tournament in Tehran on March 12, 2009. A portrait of Iran's supreme leader, Ali Khamenei hangs in the background.

Relations between the United States and Iran ended after Iranian militants seized the U.S. Embassy in Tehran in 1979 and held Americans hostage there for 444 days.

More recently, the two countries have been at odds over Iran's nuclear ambitions and have been sharply critical of each other's policies and actions in the Middle East.

But Abbott said there has been a history of U.S. and Iranian wrestling exchanges despite the politics. Both sides are always looking for opportunities to compete.

BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images. Iranian Mostafa Hossein-Khani (L) wrestles with US Michael Zadik (R) in the 66kg freestyle category at the 29th International Takhti Cup wrestling tournament in Tehran on March 12, 2009.
BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images. Iranian Mostafa Hossein-Khani (L) wrestles with US Michael Zadik (R) in the 66kg freestyle category at the 29th International Takhti Cup wrestling tournament in Tehran on March 12, 2009.

Abbott said Iran is one of the top wrestling powers in the world, along with countries such as the United States, Russia, Turkey and Ukraine. Competing in a wrestling-crazy society like Iran is special to Americans, who look forward to getting on the mats before large crowds in sold-out arenas.

"For the common citizen, an American wrestler in Iran is like Michael Jordan going over there," Abbott said, referring to the world-famous American basketball legend.

USA Wrestling said the trip is one of several overseas events this winter for American wrestlers.

BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images. US wrestler Michael Tamillow (R) warms up with his coach under a portrait of Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, after losing his first match to Iran's Rasoul Tavakoli in the 96 kg freestyle category at the 29th International Takhti Cup wrestling tournament in Tehran on March 12, 2009.
BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images. US wrestler Michael Tamillow (R) warms up with his coach under a portrait of Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, after losing his first match to Iran's Rasoul Tavakoli in the 96 kg freestyle category at the 29th International Takhti Cup wrestling tournament in Tehran on March 12, 2009.

U.S. teams also will also be competing in Russia, Ukraine, Sweden, Cuba, Bulgaria, Belarus, Turkey, Serbia, Hungary and Slovenia. The team going to Iran includes four men who have represented the United States in the Olympics

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Filed under: Iran •Pictures •U.S.


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March 11, 2009
Posted: 846 GMT

BAGHDAD, IRAQ – MARCH 10: A U.S 4th Infantry Division soldier clears a U.S army base as troops prepare to pull out of Camp Rustamiyah on March 10, 2009 in Baghdad, Iraq.

Wathiq Khuzaie/Getty Images
Wathiq Khuzaie/Getty Images

BAGHDAD, IRAQ – MARCH 10: A U.S. soldier from the 4th Infantry Division is seen near a tank carrier as troops prepare to pull out of Camp Rustamiyah on March 10, 2009 in Baghdad, Iraq.

Wathiq Khuzaie/Getty Images
Wathiq Khuzaie/Getty Images

As US President Barack Obama unveiled the details of his plan to withdraw U.S forces from Iraq, violence rose in Baghdad. A suicide bomber struck Shiite and Sunni tribal leaders at a market after they attended a peace conference on March 10, 2009, killing 33 and wounding many more in the town of Abu Ghraib west of Baghdad, Iraq.

Wathiq Khuzaie/Getty Images
Wathiq Khuzaie/Getty Images

Young Israeli schoolgirls dance in front of an effigy of US President Barack Obama during a parade to celebrate the Jewish holiday of Purim on March 10, 2009 in Holon, on the outskirts of Tel Aviv.

JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images
JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images

An Israeli family attends a parade to celebrate the Jewish holiday of Purim on March 10, 2009 in Holon, on the outskirts of Tel Aviv.

JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images
JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images

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March 10, 2009
Posted: 933 GMT

Ultra Orthodox Jews read the Esther scrolls at a synagogue in the Israeli town of Beni Brak near Tel Aviv on March 9, 2009 during the feast of Purim. The carnival-like Purim holiday is celebrated from March 9 night with parades and costume parties. It commemorates the deliverance of the Jewish people from a plot to exterminate them in the ancient Persian empire 2,500 years ago.

MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP/Getty Images
MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP/Getty Images

An ultra Orthodox Jewish man from the Beth Habad group reads the esther scrolls at a synagogue in the Israeli coastal town of Netanya during the Jewish holiday of Purim on March 9, 2009.

JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images
JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images

Ultra-Orthodox Jews belonging to the Vishnitz Chassidic sect dance on their Rabbi's table as they celebrate the Jewish festival of Purim March 9, 2009 in Bnei Brak, a religious town near Tel Aviv in central Israel.

David Silverman/Getty Images
David Silverman/Getty Images

An ultra-Orthodox Jew belonging to the Vishnitz Chassidic sect distributes bottles of wine as the community celebrates the Jewish festival of Purim March 9, 2009 in Bnei Brak, a religious town near Tel Aviv in central Israel.

David Silverman/Getty Images
David Silverman/Getty Images

Palestinian Muslims take part in a ritual ceremony to commemorate the birth of the Prophet Mohammed in Jerusalem's old city on March 9, 2009.

AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP/Getty Images
AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP/Getty Images

Muslims around the world celebrate the birth of the prophet, known in Arabic as the 'Mawlid al-Nabawi' holiday, on the third month of the Islamic lunar calendar.

AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP/Getty Images
AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP/Getty Images

Iraqi Sufi Kurds take part in a ritual ceremony to commemorate the birth of the Prophet Mohammed in the Kurdish town of Akra, 500 km north of Baghdad, on March 9, 2009.

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SAFIN HAMED/AFP/Getty Images
SAFIN HAMED/AFP/Getty Images
SAFIN HAMED/AFP/Getty Images

RAFAH, GAZA STRIP – MARCH 9: A vehicle in the UK aid convoy headed by British MP George Galloway arrives in the Gaza Strip after crossing the border between Egypt and southern Gaza on March 9, 2009 in the border town of Rafah, Gaza Strip. Galloway arrived in Gaza at the head of a 100 vehicle aid convoy from the UK, organised by the Viva Palestina group and backed by the MP.

Ahmad Khateib/Getty Images
Ahmad Khateib/Getty Images

British MP George Galloway gestures as he arrives in the Gaza Strip

Ahmad Khateib/Getty Images
Ahmad Khateib/Getty Images

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March 9, 2009
Posted: 1023 GMT

Conceived in 1910, International Women's Day was recognized by the United Nations in 1977. Nearly 100 years old, the day serves as a reminder of the fields in which women must still battle for fundamental rights, and where they remain victims of violence and enduring inequalities. It marks an ongoing worldwide battle to ensure equal rights for half the globe's population on issues such as work, voting and abortion.

Turkish Kurd women hold placards reading 'Long live 8 March,' and chant slogans on International Women's Day on March 8, 2009 in Istanbul where more than 5000 women gathered to mark International Women's Day.

MUSTAFA OZER/AFP/Getty Images
MUSTAFA OZER/AFP/Getty Images

A Turkish activist woman chants slogans on International Women's Day in Istanbul.

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MUSTAFA OZER/AFP/Getty Images

Lebanese feminists hold a sit-in on the occasion of the International Women's Day in Beirut on March 8, 2009.

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RAMZI HAIDAR/AFP/Getty Images

Lebanese protest against the abuse of foreign domestic workers on the occasion of the International Women's Day in Beirut on March 8, 2009.

RAMZI HAIDAR/AFP/Getty Images
RAMZI HAIDAR/AFP/Getty Images

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March 4, 2009
Posted: 1031 GMT

CNN's Arwa Damon sits down with Dr. Israa Al Tawalbeh, Jordan's first female forensics doctor. She examines the body of almost every recorded victim of "honor crimes" in Jordan. According to her, 90 percent of vicims are virgins.

Rym Momtaz/CNN.
Rym Momtaz/CNN.

CNN's Arwa Damon visits the autopsy lab at the Central Forensics Medicine Centre in Amman, Jordan.

Rym Momtaz/CNN.
Rym Momtaz/CNN.

An autopsy table, a body had just been examined here an hour ago.

Rym Momtaz/CNN.
Rym Momtaz/CNN.

Rana Husseini. Jordan Times Journalist and Activist. She was the first journalist to publish detailed reports of instances of "honor crimes" in Jordan.

Rym Momtaz/CNN
Rym Momtaz/CNN

Rana Husseini shows CNN's Arwa Damon archived records of "honor crimes".

Rym Momtaz/CNN
Rym Momtaz/CNN

CNN's Arwa Damon checks her "stand-up" in a graveyard outside of Amman.

Rym Momtaz/CNN.
Rym Momtaz/CNN.

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March 3, 2009
Posted: 1309 GMT

If you ever happen to walk around the popular Hamidiyeh souk in Damascus, Syria, make sure you visit one of the lingerie shops. Their locally-designed and produced offerings might surprise you. Customers range from young wives-to-be preparing their wedding night with the help of their knowledgeable mothers, but also older women looking for ways to keep their marriage young.

A pair of battery operated novelty underwear at a shop in the popular Hamadiyeh souk in Damascus

LOUAI BESHARA/AFP/Getty Images.
LOUAI BESHARA/AFP/Getty Images.

Knickers decorated with singing canaries.

LOUAI BESHARA/AFP/Getty Images.
LOUAI BESHARA/AFP/Getty Images.

Bold and slightly racy?

LOUAI BESHARA/AFP/Getty Images.
LOUAI BESHARA/AFP/Getty Images.

A selection of honey and chocolate flavoured panties.

LOUAI BESHARA/AFP/Getty Images.
LOUAI BESHARA/AFP/Getty Images.

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