One of the men impersonated a pregnant woman and was pushed in a wheelchair.

Having accepted that President Bashar al-Assad will stay in power for a "transitional period", the US is trying to persuade Russia and Iran to curb the worst excesses of their ally.

A sudden surge of population puts too much strain on the social and physical infrastructure of receiving countries, but it also severely diminishes the hope that the forsaken country can ever recover.

Fighting to protect the tyranny of Assad because of the fear of the evil of Isis would be pointless.

Nothing less than a multifaceted strategy is required to address both the political causes and the military symptoms of the rise of Isis, writes Robert Patman.

The generosity of Kiwis has helped that the plight of millions of refugees.

Rachel Smalley is drawn into the nightmare of two brothers who are separated en route to Germany.

Rachel Smalley comes face to face with the grim reality of life as a refugee in Turkey as she witnesses how families try to rebuild their lives.

Hundreds of thousands of Syrians are dead, millions are displaced or living as refugees, and 13.5 million people are relying on aid just to sustain their lives.

Josh Emett dines out in Dubai and discovers the best creme brulee he has tasted.

Hazara family tell Rachel Smalley they are in Serbia to escape the resurgent Taliban in their home country.

Rachel Smalley reports about a couple's 2000km trip over land and sea with handicapped twins getting closer to their goal: 'To live respectful lives'.

The Forgotten Millions Campaign travels to the epicentre of the refugee crisis in Europe. Today, we reveal the human toll of the crisis.

My role, as a journalist, should be to act as a witness; to report on the situation as a bystander and then leave it as I found it, but an incident in 2013 changed my perspective, writes Rachel Smalley.

Immigration Minister confirms New Zealand will take a total of 750 Syrian refugees - 600 in an emergency intake over and above the usual annual quota of 750.

Church communities around New Zealand can host and settle an extra 1200 Syrian refugees, the Anglican and Catholic Church says.

The one-off intake will go "over and above" New Zealand's annual refugee quota, but will not number into the thousands, Prime Minister says.

Rachel Smalley is set to return to the Middle East this year as she continues to spread awareness and raise money for the growing refugee crisis.

The three US airlines say competition from rapidly-expanding Persian Gulf carriers has cut their passenger load to the Middle East and Asia by more than 20%.

Celebrated New Zealand author Charlotte Grimshaw follows Ramadan, starting in Dubai and ending on the West Bank.

Forts and watchtowers by the hundred in the sultanate of Oman point to a fierce past.

NZ has told members of the UN Security Council that there is a window of opportunity for the council to act to restart negotiations in the Israeli-Palestinian dispute.

Foreign Minister Murray McCully is quite blunt about the Security Council and the Middle East peace process.

Once upon a time Patricia Greig had the good fortune of a luxury stopover in Dubai.

In several of Oman's tiny villages, some clinging to the sides of cliffs, Jim Eagles finds plenty of hospitality from friendly locals.

Jerusalem's Church of the Holy Sepulchre is visited by Christians from everywhere, writes Kate Shuttleworth.

Eye-witnesses say streets of Palmyra are strewn with hundreds of bodies – the latest victims of terrorists's savagery.

Mass graves containing the bodies of 1700 Iraqi military cadets killed by Isis are being opened - TV clips showing skeletal remains still wearing combat boots.

Abducted, locked away, all but starved, raped... then, a dramatic escape. How one Yazidi girl escaped the clutches of her Isis captors.