Belarussian author Svetlana Alexievich has won the Nobel Prize for Literature for her portrayal of life in the former Soviet Union which the Swedish Academy said was "a monument to suffering and courage in our time". Alexievich's work includes chronicles of the lives of Soviet...

 A film on the life of Prophet Mohammad is expected to break box office records in Shi'ite Muslim Iran after its release on Thursday, but some Sunni Muslim clerics in the Arab world are demanding that Tehran ban it.     The state-sponsored "Mohammad, Messenger of God",...

 Malek Jandali may only have been alive for four decades but the award-winning composer insists he feels ancient, having revived some of the oldest melodies from his war-torn Syrian homeland. "I'm 8,000 years old," said the pianist, in the middle of a world tour he hopes will spread...

“I’ve taken this out so many times,” said Hani, as he deftly unzips a black laptop case. From two side pockets the Syrian remove a statue, some beads and an assortment of stones and arrange them for viewing. Nestled in the bag is an intricately carved 4,000-year-old limestone...