Middle East

Melissa Block has an exit interview with Kelly McEvers, who's ending a grueling years-long assignment in the Middle East that included coverage of Iraq, Syria and beyond. McEvers and her NPR colleague Deborah Amos, won four major awards in 2012 for coverage of the Syrian conflict.

As Egypt plunges into unrest amid the military-backed government's crackdown on demonstrators, the country's Christian minority has been targeted by Islamic extremists. Their fate mirrors conditions faced by Christians across the Middle East.

Just a fragment of genes in bat guano was enough for researchers trying to find out how a deadly new virus spreads. It's the first time the Middle East respiratory syndrome virus has been found in an animal, and offers strong evidence that bats carry the virus.

The Obama administration is deploring the military-backed interim government's use of violence against protesters, but it's not punishing the Egyptian military by cutting off aid.

The Iraqis, among many other Middle Easterners, believe they invented the kebab. The skewered meat dish appears as early as the 9th century in a book from the southern city of Basra called The Book of Misers.

Scientists find the a tantalizing clue about where people may be catching the Middle East respiratory syndrome. Camels on the Arabian Peninsula and Canary Islands show signs that they've been infected with the virus or a close relative.

Israeli settlers turned the area near the spring into a picnic spot. A local Palestinian says the land has been in his family for generations. The fight is symbolic of the much larger battle over West Bank land.

More than 20 diplomatic posts, including consulates, have been temporarily shut down throughout the Middle East and the Arabian peninsula and the State Department has issued a global travel warning for Americans.

Few details have emerged about the U.S. plan to shut down embassies that would normally be open this Sunday. A senior State Department official says that the U.S. facilities may close for more days, as well. The closures are described as "precautionary steps" taken "out of an abundance of caution."

Monday's meeting will mark the beginning of the first direct negotiations between the two sides since 2008.