A nation in peril - Iraq's struggle to hold together
"It's probably the most serious crisis that Iraq has faced since its inception as a country"
Salim al-Jabouri, speaker of Iraqi Council of Representatives, and Syrian Catholic Archbishop of Mosul Yohanna Petros Mouche address news conference in Bertila, east of Mosul
Salim al-Jabouri (R), speaker of the Iraqi Council of Representatives, and Syrian Catholic Archbishop of Mosul Yohanna Petros Mouche (L) address a news conference in Bertila, east of Mosul, July 27, 2014. REUTERS/Stringer (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS RELIGION)
A civil defence member is stuck under debris at a site hit by what activists said were two barrel bombs dropped by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad inAl-Shaar neighbourhood of Aleppo
A civil defence member is stuck under debris at a site hit by what activists said were two barrel bombs dropped by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in the Al-Shaar neighbourhood of Aleppo July 27, 2014. REUTERS/Stringer (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY)
A Civil defence member looks for survivors at a site hit by what activists said were two barrel bombs dropped by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in the Al-Shaar neighbourhood of Aleppo J
A Civil defence member looks for survivors at a site hit by what activists said were two barrel bombs dropped by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in the Al-Shaar neighbourhood of Aleppo July 27, 2014. REUTERS/Hamid Khatib (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY)
Civil defence members look for survivors at a site hit by what activists said were two barrel bombs dropped by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Al-Shaar neighbourhood of Aleppo
Civil defence members look for survivors at a site hit by what activists said were two barrel bombs dropped by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in the Al-Shaar neighbourhood of Aleppo July 27, 2014. REUTERS/Hamid Khatib (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT)
A Civil defence member looks for survivors at a site hit by what activists said were two barrel bombs dropped by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in the Al-Shaar neighbourhood of Aleppo J
A Civil defence member looks for survivors at a site hit by what activists said were two barrel bombs dropped by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in the Al-Shaar neighbourhood of Aleppo July 27, 2014. REUTERS/Hamid Khatib (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT)
Syria retakes Homs gas field from hardline group
SYRIA-CRISIS/GASFIELD:Syria retakes Homs gas field from hardline group
Residents inspect a site hit by what activists said were two barrel bombs dropped in Al-Shaar neighbourhood of Aleppo
Residents inspect a site hit by what activists said were two barrel bombs dropped by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Al-Shaar neighbourhood of Aleppo July 27, 2014. REUTERS/Stringer (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT)
Residents help an injured civil defence member who survived what activists said were two barrel bombs dropped in Al-Shaar neighbourhood of Aleppo
Residents help an injured civil defence member who survived what activists said were two barrel bombs dropped at a site by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Al-Shaar neighbourhood of Aleppo July 27, 2014. REUTERS/Stringer (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT)
A resident carries an injured civil defence member who survived what activists said were two barrel bombs dropped in Al-Shaar neighbourhood of Aleppo
A resident carries an injured civil defence member who survived what activists said were two barrel bombs dropped at a site by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Al-Shaar neighbourhood of Aleppo July 27, 2014. REUTERS/Stringer (SYRIA - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT)