Yemen holds 1-candidate presidential vote Tuesday

Yemen holds a presidential election Tuesday with only one candidate on the ballot to replace longtime ruler Ali Abdullah Saleh. Vice President Abdurabu Mansur Hadi took over Yemen's government in November, when Saleh handed over power after months of protests. Though Hadi will be the only name on the ballot on Tuesday, he has insisted on standing for election to make his presidency official.

Iraq Sunni VP denies terrorism allegations

Iraq's Sunni Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi denied terrorism charges against him Monday, calling them "politically motivated" in a televised speech broadcast from the semiautonomous Kurdish region in the north. Iraq's top judicial committee on Thursday accused al-Hashimi's security detail of carrying out 150 attacks against security forces and civilians between 2005 and 2011. Al-Hashimi

Iranian warships dock at Syrian port

Two Iranian warships docked at the Syrian port of Tartus in what was described as a training mission, following a provocative journey through the Suez Canal at a time of global tension over the Islamic Republic's nuclear ambitions. The vessels, a destroyer and a supply ship, docked in the Syrian port after passing through the canal Saturday. Tartus is home to Damascus-ally Russia's only

UN Nuclear Inspectors in Iran to Investigate Atomic Program

A team of United Nations nuclear inspectors is in Iran for a visit aimed at resolving the dispute about Iran's nuclear program. The delegation from the International Atomic Energy Agency arrived in Tehran Monday. It is led by IAEA chief nuclear inspector Herman Nackaerts, who said his top priority is analyzing the "possible military dimensions of Iran's nuclear program." He said the IAEA

U.N. nuclear watchdog agency in Iran for more talks

Officials with the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency begin a second round of talks Monday with Iranian officials over the country's nuclear program, a day after Tehran cut off crude exports to British and French companies in retaliation for a new round of sanctions imposed on the regime. The two days of talks come amid heightened tensions in the region, with Israel making clear it is pondering an

Middle East Digital Jewish Heritage Tour -- Off Geographical Topic but Relevant

By Ruth Ellen Gruber

I want to highlight the Diarna project, a web site devoted to a digital tour of Mizrachi culture and Jewish heritage in the Middle East and North Africa. There are photographs, videos, descriptions and digital reconstructions of synagogues, etc.

Border guards, plane tickets, and security concerns don�t exist inside Diarna�s unique digital tour. Instead, join a multimedia journey to the region�s captivating yet rarely-visited Jewish heritage sites, from Saharan outposts in southern Morocco to remote Kurdish villages in Iran, to epic sites in the Arabian Peninsula.

Diarna, �Our Homes� in Judeo-Arabic, is a project dedicated to virtually preserving Mizrahi (�Eastern�) Jewish history through the lens of physical location. Satellite imagery, photographs, videos, oral history, and even three-dimensional models offer a unique digital window onto sites and communities disappearing before our very eyes. As structures decay and the last generation to live in these locations passes on, we are in a race against time to preserve priceless cultural treasures.

Four ways to begin your journey:

• View Diarna�s Media Gallery, including video tours of the Jewish cemetery in Khartoum, Sudan and the ancient synagogue in Oufrane, Morocco.
• Download a sample Diarna Google Earth tour layer, featuring sites in Egypt, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, and Iraq.
• Make a Virtual Pilgramage to Moroccan Anti-Atlas Mountain Shrines
• Tour a 3-D Reconstruction of the Magen Avraham Synagogue in Beirut, Lebanon