Ankara / AFP Human Rights Watch on Thursday accused Turkey of “silencing” independent media in its bid to prevent scrutiny or criticism of its huge crackdown following the failed July coup. In a report, the US-based rights watchdog said Turkey’s “assault” on critical journalism had accelerated since the attempted overthrow of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan—but said it began several years ...

  Hasansham Camp / AFP Years of life under extremist rule and war have left thousands of Iraqi children old beyond their years and in desperate need of playtime to overcome their trauma. Malak, 11, says she has “come back from hell”. She huddles in a long black coat at the Hasansham displacement camp where thousands of people have lived since ...

  Paris / AFP The UN’s cultural agency called for emergency measures on Thursday to prevent further looting at the historic Iraqi city of Nimrud which has been wrecked by IS militants. Nimrud, founded in the 13th century BC on the Tigris river about 30 kilometres southeast of Mosul, was retaken by Iraqi forces on November 13 after it was overrrun ...