SANAA, 14 August 2008 (IRIN) - Water availability in Yemen has been worsening by the year and the government has no clear strategy on how to deal with the problem, experts have said. They say water shortages are exacerbated by the high fertility rate, rapid urbanisation, the cultivation of `qat’ (a mild narcotic) a lack of public awareness, and the arbitrary digging of wells.

RAMALLAH, 14 August 2008 (IRIN) - A newly formed Ramallah-based “Palestinian community foundation” said it is looking to change the way aid is given, so that more sections of society benefit from international donations and less money goes to waste.

HEBRON, 10 August 2008 (IRIN) - The toughest part of the West Bank just got a bit sweeter, with an influx of beehives, helping farmers cope with the decline in their economic situation.

DAMASCUS, 06 August 2008 (IRIN) - With a Shia mother and a Sunni father, and having worked for the US forces in Iraq, Asad al-Johari and his family found themselves a target for both sides of Baghdad’s civil war. His mother was murdered in a Sunni neighbourhood of Baghdad, but when they moved to the Shia stronghold of Sadr City the family received a letter telling them to “leave or die”.

HISA, AKKAR, 05 August 2008 (IRIN) - They may have been uprooted “more than 40 times” over the years since Lebanon’s Civil War began in 1975, but Hussein Mohammed and his family say they have rarely felt as threatened as they do today.