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Mecca is considered to be the holiest city for the Islamic religion. Each year, millions of Muslims travel to the site shown above, the Kaaba, in a process known as the Hajj. At this holy site, they circle the Kaaba, hoping to kiss the black stone embedded at the side of the structure. I am fascinated by its role in Muslim and Middle Eastern culture as a whole.

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The United Arab Emirates is one of the fastest-growing countries in the Middle Eastern region. Known for its low taxes and friendly business environment, it has become the financial center for much of this region as a whole. I specifically chose to write about this country because I actually grew up there until I was nine and am hoping to return for the first time this summer.

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This image describes the story of the city of Aleppo: a once prosperous center of the Middle East has been torn apart by war. I feel especially connected to the city, considering I visited it before the war began and saw the city's famous ruins before they were turned to rubble.

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This image highlights the war that is occurring between Israel and Palestine, specifically the fact that the war directly involves many civilians, as shown by the contrast of the fully-suited militants and children playing in the street.

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This image shows the famous Alhambra in Granada, Spain. It represents the combination of two cultures: the Spanish and the Muslims.

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The image above shows the Nile River, one of the world's most important bodies of water in our history. It was one of the earliest places where agriculture was implemented, but it has found a new purpose in the modern era, transporting goods to provide for Egypt's dense city centers.

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The image shown shows one of the greatest landmarks in the Middle East: Petra. It is a structure carved from sandstone deep through the valleys of Southern Jordan.

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Above, you can see the capital of Kuwait, creatively named Kuwait City. Of all things, this country is most known for their oil reserves that far outmatch the size of their population allowing for them to build a beautiful city as shown.

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The image above shows the World Cup most recently hosted in Qatar, a major accomplishment for a such small country. In fact, the country used this major sporting event to remaster their entire city from buildings and billions of dollars worth of transportation to energizing the city's culture.

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The image shows the current state of Baghdad: a country struggling to return to the height it reached during its rich history. More importantly, this image shows the strong religious influences within the region and how important Islam remains despite the struggles Iraq has faced in combat against the US and with political instability in general.

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This image highlights a somewhat forgotten aspect of Tehran and the country of Iran: its rich culture. Many people's perspective of place is clouded by the radically-conservative ruling political party, forgetting what makes Tehran so unique. This reminded me of how the video similarly misrepresented Israel and its tensions, showing one perspective of the country.

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This image highlights the duality between modernity and its history, which Saudi Arabia balances as it pursues rapid development. Returning to the Israel video, I find that Saudi has been characterized for its authoritarian government, despite its central role in Muslim culture and its attempts to create a society based on Western values of equality.