Middle East in ReviewNat CastañedaAugust 05, 2017Comment

Middle East in Review

Middle East in ReviewNat CastañedaAugust 05, 2017Comment

Middle East in Review is a monthly gallery that features some of the top photojournalism made by AP staff photographers and freelancers based in AP’s Middle East, Afghanistan & Pakistan region.

This month’s selection highlights the battle against the Islamic State group in Mosul, where Iraq’s second largest city paid a heavy price for its freedom from militant rule, and Raqqa, where U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces are pushing into the city.

In the holy land, a dispute over metal detectors has escalated into a new showdown between Israel and the Muslim world over the contested Jerusalem shrine that has been at the center of violent confrontations in the past.

In Pakistan, the Supreme Court in a unanimous decision has asked the country's anti-corruption body to file corruption charges against Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, his two sons and daughter for concealing their assets.

This gallery was curated by Maya Alleruzzo, Chief Associated Press photo editor for the Mideast, Afghanistan & Pakistan.

A U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces fighter, runs in front of a damaged building as he crosses a street on the front line, in Raqqa city, northeast Syria, Thursday, July 27, 2017. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Smoke billows over the Old City after several strikes as Iraqi forces continue their advance against Islamic State militants in Mosul, Iraq on July 3, 2017. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Palestinian youths hurl stones towards Israeli police officers during clashes in Jerusalem, Friday, July 21, 2017. A Jerusalem hospital spokeswoman says a Palestinian has been killed by live fire during confrontations with Israeli police in the city. Bayan Baidoun of Mukassed Hospital says this brings to two the number of Palestinians killed Friday. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)

Iraqi Special Forces gather at the frontline after calling for an airstrip as Iraqi forces continue their advance against Islamic State militants in the Old City of Mosul, Iraq, Friday, July 7, 2017. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Suspected Islamic State members sit inside a small room in a prison south of Mosul, Tuesday, July 18, 2017. Hundreds of suspected Islamic State members swept up by Iraqi forces in Mosul are being held in a cramped and stifling prison just outside the city. (AP Photo/Bram Janssen)

Syrian displaced people who fled the battle between U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces and the Islamic State militants from Raqqa city, walk in the dust at a refugee camp, in Ain Issa town, northeast Syria, Wednesday, July 19, 2017. The U.S. military is supporting local Syrian forces in a campaign to drive IS from Raqqa.(AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) fighters move into position for a battle against Islamic state group militants, in Raqqa, northeast Syria on June 22, 2017. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Youths who fled with their families the battle between U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces and the Islamic State militants from Raqqa, hold their pots as they wait to receive food at the entrance of the main kitchen of a refugee camp, in Ain Issa town, northeast Syria, Wednesday, July 19, 2017. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

An Iraqi Special Forces soldiers drives a humvee through the Old City as the fight against Islamic State militants continues in Mosul, Iraq, Sunday, July 9, 2017. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

A U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces fighter, runs as he fires mortars against the Islamic State militants at one of the front lines, in Raqqa, Syria, Thursday, July 27, 2017. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Airstrikes target Islamic State positions on the edge of the Old City a day after Iraq's prime minister declared "total victory" in Mosul, Iraq, Tuesday, July 11, 2017. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

A U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces fighter looks through a hole from his position into an Islamic State controlled street on the front line on the western side of Raqqa, northeast Syria on July 17, 2017. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla, File)

A family who fled from Raqqa the battle between U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces and the Islamic State militants, sit outside their tent at a refugee camp, in Ain Issa, northeast Syria, Wednesday, July 19, 2017. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Syrian Internal Security Forces dance during their graduation ceremony, at Ain Issa desert base, in Raqqa province, northeast Syria, Thursday, July 20, 2017.(AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Men look at the remains of their properties at the site of a suicide attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, July 24, 2017. A suicide car bomb killed dozens of people as well as the bomber early Monday morning in a western neighborhood of Afghanistan's capital where several prominent politicians reside, a government official said. (AP Photos/Massoud Hossaini)

An Afghan security forces soldier stands guard at the site of a suicide attack followed by a clash between Afghan forces and IS fighters during an attack on the Iraqi embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, July 31, 2017. (AP Photos/Rahmat Gul)

Protesters throw stones at Israeli solders during clashes on the Israeli border with the Gaza Strip, Friday, July 28, 2017. Gaza's Health Ministry says a Palestinian teen was killed in clashes with Israeli soldiers stationed near the strip's border fence with Israel. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

Israeli border police officers stand guard as Muslim men pray outside the Al Aqsa Mosque compound, in Jerusalem, Sunday, July 16, 2017. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)

A Palestinian protester throws a teargas canister fired by Israeli soldiers back during clashes on the Israeli border with Gaza, Friday, July 21, 2017. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

Jerusalem's Old City is seen trough a door with the shape of star of David, Tuesday, July 25, 2017.(AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

An Israeli border policeman takes a selfie during clashes in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, Friday, July 21, 2017. (AP Photo/Nasser Shiyoukhi)

Palestinian protesters stand on top of a sandy hill during clashes with Israeli soldiers on the Israeli border with Gaza, Friday, July 21, 2017. (AP Photo/ Khalil Hamra)

Israeli border police officers detain a Palestinian youth in Jerusalem's Old City, Monday, July 17, 2017.(AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)

Women watch and photograph the funeral procession of Mohammed al-Jawawdeh, a 16-year-old Jordanian, who was killed on Sunday evening by an Israeli security guard who said he was attacked by him with a screw driver, on Tuesday, July 25, 2017 in Amman, Jordan. (AP Photo/Lindsey Leger)

Palestinians run away from tear gas thrown by Israeli police officers outside Jerusalem's Old City, Friday, July 21, 2017. (AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)

A four-picture combo shows Israeli police officers clashing with Palestinians outside the Lion's Gate, following an appeal from clerics for Muslims to pray in the streets instead of the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, in Jerusalem's Old City, Wednesday, July 19, 2017.(AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

A pile of tires is seen burning on a road leading to the southern Jordanian town of al-Jafr on Tuesday, July 18, 2017. Hundreds of people in al-Jafr staged protests Tuesday following the conviction of a local soldier a day earlier in the shooting deaths of three U.S. military trainers. (AP Photo/Reem Saad)

Relatives mourn during the funeral of Mohammad Jebril in the West Bank village of Tekoa, near Bethlehem, Tuesday, July 11, 2017. Jebril was shot dead Monday after a stabbing attack against Israeli soldiers at Tekoa checkpoint. (AP Photo/Nasser Shiyoukhi).

Israeli police forensic experts inspect the body of a Palestinian at the scene of an attack in the Al Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem's Old City, Friday, July 14, 2017.(AP Photo/Mahmoud Illean)

An Israeli Wrestler waits to enter the ring during The Rage Wrestling Mega Show in Tel Aviv, Israel, Sunday, July 9, 2017. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Wrestler Hakem Waqur puts a hold on Tatanka during The Rage Wrestling Mega Show in Tel Aviv, Israel, Sunday, July 9, 2017. The Israeli Wrestling League hosted a wrestling show in Tel Aviv with Kevin Von Erich and some of the WWE greatest of all time. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Fireworks explode over the coastal town of Jounieh, Lebanon, Saturday, July 15, 2017, during the city's international festival. The two-month annual festival includes concerts by local and international singers as well as plays and activities. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)

Wrestler David Starr jumps towards Juran Simmons during The Rage Wrestling Mega Show in Tel Aviv, Israel, Sunday, July 9, 2017.(AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Muhannad Khaled Omar, right, prepares an image of U.S. President Donald Trump on the back of a customer's head at his barber shop in Burj al-Barajneh, southern Beirut, Lebanon on July 14, 2017. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)

Pakistani relatives of suicide bombing victim mourn during a funeral in Lahore, Pakistan, Tuesday, July 25, 2017. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)

Supporters of the Pakistani ruling party Muslim League headed by Nawaz Sharif gesture during rally to condemn the dismissal of their leader in Lahore, Pakistan, Pakistan, Friday, July 28, 2017. Pakistan's Supreme Court in a unanimous decision has asked the country's anti-corruption body to file corruption charges against Sharif, his two sons and daughter for concealing their assets. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)

Yem

A girl carries a bucket filled with water from a well that is allegedly contaminated with cholera bacteria, on the outskirts of Sanaa, Yemen, Wednesday, July 12, 2017. T(AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)