Photo Essays

After the overthrow of President Hosni Mubarak and the coup against his successor, Mohammed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood, many Egyptians were relieved and delighted that Abdul Fattah al-Sisi was at the helm. Civil society, however, has paid a high price. By Diana Hodali

In the autumn of 1989, Dresden was one of the East German cities that became known worldwide for the peaceful "Monday demonstrations" against the government of the GDR that precipitated the fall of the Berlin Wall a few months later. One of the slogans chanted by the protesters at the time was "Wir sind das Volk" (We are the people). Twenty-five years on, a very different movement began organising weekly Monday demonstrations and chanting "Wir sind das Volk". In this photo gallery, we chart some of the reactions to Pegida and the developments relating to this anti-immigration and anti-Islam movement.

France is still reeling from the events of a turbulent week in which 12 people were shot dead in an attack on the satirical magazine "Charlie Hebdo", a policewoman was killed and four hostages lost their lives in an attack on a kosher supermarket. In this photo gallery, we show some of the key images of the past week from Paris and around the world.

Back in 2014, some 450 Bedouin Palestinian families (a total of about 3,400 individuals) in 13 villages in the Al-Maleh area of the West Bank were facing eviction by the Israel Defence Forces (IDF). As recent events show, little has changed. By Mohammad Alhaj

In this photo gallery, Valerie Stocker gives a fascinating insight into the diversity of ethnic and tribal groups in modern-day Libya

Every year, groups of Shia men parade through the centre of Nabatiyeh, where Lebanon's major Ashura rituals take place. These rituals include the controversial bloodletting rite known as "tatbir". Although frowned upon by religious and political authorities, Shia communities still practice tatbir as a vital part of their communal act of mourning Imam Hussein, who was martyred at the pivotal Battle of Karbala in 680 AD. Text and photos by Maya Hautefeuille

Abdul Fattah al-Sisi's government has little to show for its first hundred days in office: the economy is still far from having recovered from the January 2011 revolution, energy prices are soaring, tourism is floundering and freedom of expression is not what it should be.

In 2002, the then Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon approved the construction of a barrier wall that would run along the ceasefire line of 1949 with the intention of separating Israeli territories from the Palestinian West Bank. In Bethlehem, graffiti artists have started using the wall as a canvas for political protest and socially critical art. By Laura Overmeyer

Thousands of Yazidis were trapped on Mount Sinjar after being forced to flee their homes by Islamic State terrorist militias. Many have fled to Syria; others have remained in Iraq. The US has provided food and water, although Washington no longer sees the need for a rescue mission. Their situation is desperate.