Middle East

Ann Hills explores the Yemen Arab Republic's unique historic capital.

Michael Houses looks at the grievances and history of the troubled Middle East country.

Running after foreign gods - Richard Stoneman explains how Rome's Syrian rival, the city of Palmyra, and her formidable queen Zenobia influenced the religion and mores of the later Empire - and brought us in the process Christmas Day.

Terence Mirabelli investigates why Syria is losing an archaeological site.

Kuwait has enjoyed wealth far longer than the other oil producing states of the Middle East and is proud to spend its riches on its heritage, as Philip Mansel explores here.

British-Russian rivalry over the control of Persia had, by the beginning of the twentieth century, a long history. Donald Ewalt shows how this conflict was greatly intensified by the discovery of oil and a growing realisation of its importance.

by Edward W. Said

In the second article of The Resurgence of Islam Dr. Leila Ahmed, an Egyptian scholar who has taught at the United Arab Emirates University, examines the Islamic past - that of the Prophet Muhammad and the first four 'right-guarded caliphs' - to which the leaders of the current resurgence in the Islamic world seek a return.

Robert Graves, working from Greek and Latin sources, and Joshua Podro, working from Hebrew, Aramaic and Syriac sources, completed a detailed restoration of the original Nazarene Gospel in 1952. Here is a sample of their findings.