Fatma Tanis

Pakistan's second largest city, Lahore, tops the world's most polluted city list, along with India's New Delhi. Poor air quality has prompted the government to order a partial shutdown of schools.

Students and faculty with the Afghanistan National Institute of Music flew last week from Doha to Lisbon, where they will start their new lives and reconstitute their celebrated academy in exile.

The emergency gathering of the Organization for Islamic Cooperation was the largest international meeting on Afghanistan since the country fell to the Taliban in August.

"We want to prove to everyone forever that we respect humanity," Taliban spokesman Muhammad Naeem Wardak told NPR in Doha, Qatar. He also said women "must have the right to education and to work."

In the news, the al-Aqsa mosque compound is a fuse for conflict between Israel and Palestinians. But in daily life of Muslims, it's a park, holy site and, yes, a symbol of resistance.

An Israeli demolition last month revived fears among residents of al-Bustan in east Jerusalem's Silwan neighborhood. "Yes, Bustan is going to be demolished for a park," says Jerusalem's deputy mayor.

In the village of Jisr al-Zarqa, residents wish for opportunities available in nearby Jewish towns. They wonder if the new government, which includes an Arab party for the first time, will help.

The controversial law would prevent Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and Gaza from acquiring residency in Israel, even after they marry Palestinians with Israeli citizenship.

Saudi Arabia released activist Lujain al-Hathloul from prison on Wednesday. AlHathloul led the campaign to allow women drivers in the Kingdom.

Loujain al-Hathloul has been held for nearly three years. While she was behind bars, she became an emblem of the struggle for women's rights in Saudi Arabia.