Federal government says the statements by 300 prominent figures is 'not representative' of the population

At Erbil conference, participants also call for rebuilding ties with the country's dispossessed Jewish diaspora; normalization remains a crime under Iraqi law

Analysts lament world leaders appearing to accept region's nations being wrecked and divided for the foreseeable future: 'You can’t be safe if your neighbors’ house is on fire'

UNESCO hails return of artifact, which was looted during Islamic State rule and then illegally imported to the US, as 'a significant victory'

With IS just miles away, a US army vet, 2 Israeli engineers and the head of a preservation group carried out an audacious plan to restore an ancient shrine of the biblical prophet

Military correspondent Judah Ari Gross and political reporter Tal Schneider discuss Gaza, the Israeli attitude to Iran and a dramatic, secret Iraqi mission

US invasion aimed at confronting 'axis of evil' led to years of unrest, violence, and civil strife, rather than bringing the stability originally envisioned

French president meets Nobel Peace Prize laureate Nadia Murad, a 28-year-old Yazidi activist who was forced into sexual slavery by IS fighters

More than 12 million people in the 2 countries are affected, plus another 4 million in Lebanon facing critical water shortages

Mother of journalist Farzad Bazoft says documents relating to UK connections to so-called supergun were stolen from him days before he traveled to Baghdad