Iranians go to polls as moderates bid to challenge conservative dominance

More than 55 million people eligible to vote in parliamentary and Assembly of Experts elections that could set countrys future

Iraqi cleric Sadr threatens to march on Baghdads Green Zone

Tens of thousands of supporters for Moqtada al-Sadr gathered in Tahrir Square on Friday to demand government reforms

The Demographics of Stagnation

Why People Matter for Economic Growth

The Inequality Puzzle

Putting Putin in his Place

The Closing of the Academic Mind

Isis propaganda should be ignored by media outlets, say researchers

Lowy Institute research into the group’s manipulation of western media argues Isis’s slick footage should clearly be tagged as propaganda in TV broadcasts

Arms sales to Saudi Arabia and Qatar almost triple in four years

Stockholm Peace Institute study shows Gulf states amassing huge military stockpiles, as US remains biggest exporter

Iraqis take a bite out of (no chocolate) cleric

Sheikh Jalaleddin al-Saghir is mocked on social media for attacking people who spend their money on (unnecessary) chocolate bars

Fire damages future refugee home in eastern Germany

Post-war Iraq: “Everybody is corrupt, from top to bottom. Including me”

If You are an Unhappy Iraqi Asylum-Seeker, Finland Will Fly You Home