Hermione Gee

The psychoactive drug Kush continues to devastate poorer communities in Sierra Leone. In France, there has been a rise in adult baptisms amoung catholics, and in Japan, wine production has expanded beyond the traditional rice wine sake to what is

Fijian soldiers have been part of UN peacekeeping operations in Iraq since 2004. Five have been killed and others are being held captive by the Syrian branch of al-Qaeda. One way the brigade stays committed and strong is to sing. And they believe it keeps them safe, as well.

The city of Makhmour lies on the edge of Iraq's Kurdistan Region. When Islamic State militants attacked the area last summer, they didn’t just threaten…

Audio essay on how ISIS reignited mistrust between the Turkish government and its Kurdish population.

There are a myriad of ways that people choose to worship Jesus Christ. While the majority of Christians belong to etablished Catholic, Protestant or Orthodox churches, there are a growing number of new churches, often led by charismatic figures. That has led to accusations that they are cults, unhealthy for their members' spiritual and emotional well-being. RFI's reporters look at some of the less orthodox forms of Christianity.

The "Islamic State" siege has been broken, but hundreds of families remain living in difficult conditions on the mountain. We find out why.

The Yazidis are a Kurdish ethno-religious minority. We join them in Lalish for their biggest festival of the year.

It's been almost a year since Islamic State took over the ancient Iraqi city of Mosul and brought the jihadist group to the world's attention. As the Iraqi army fled the militant onslaught, some half a million people followed. But now… a volunteer army is preparing to help retake the city they were forced to abandon. Hermione Gee went to meet them

Iraq’s Kurdistan Region is home to one of the world's oldest Christian communities. In the last decade it has also welcomed Christians from the rest of Iraq who were persecuted for their religious beliefs. Christmas in Kurdistan takes on a special meaning for Christians knowing that not all their fellow citizens are free to celebrate the holiday.

Earlier this year, the rise of Islamist militants in Iraq and Syria caught the world's attention.

For Christian communities in Iraq, the Kurdistan region has become a sanctuary from the terrorist group "Islamic State." But many of Kurdistan's Christians are planning to flee themselves.

With a worldwide population of 40 million, the Kurds are the world’s largest ethnic group without a homeland. The current crisis in Iraq has brought the dream of an independent Kurdish state a little closer.

Hermione Gee, a reporter currently based in Northern Iraq, joins Take Two to describe the scene on the ground in several cities in the country as this insurgency continues to build.

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Of the two million Syrians displaced since the start of the war, over 200,000 Syrian Kurds, around half of whom are children, have fled to Iraqi Kurdistan. Free schooling is available to all the refugees but as reporter Hermione Gee reports from Iraqi Kurdistan, there are many factors preventing Syrian children from continuing their education there.

It's twenty-two years since the Kurdish uprising that saw Iraqi Kurdistan gain autonomy from Iraq. But the region is still dealing with the legacy of many years of war in the form of millions of unexploded mines and bombs scattered across its three provinces.

Unlike most of Iraq, the Kurdistan Region is safe, prosperous and modernizing rapidly. But when it comes to women's rights, there's still much room for improvement. Even though lawmakers have outlawed domestic violence, honour killing and female genital mutilation, social norms haven't caught up and many women face still face violence from their families. One major step for women's rights is the government's focus on providing safe shelters for these women but they are only a very temporary solu

Like many countries in the Middle East region, Kurdistan has a long tradition of textile craftsmanship. But war and unrest in the region led to many Kurdish tribes being uprooted and abandoning their textile tradition. Last month, a project designed to reintroduce traditional skills and crafts to a new generation opened in an ancient Citadel in Erbil, northern Iraq.

Istanbul’s street markets are not just a charming tourist attraction, they're also where locals do much of their shopping. Piled high with fruit, vegetables, cheese, nuts and other goods, stalls line the streets in every corner of the city. But the last few years have seen a lot of changes to these traditional bazaars, as city officials try to modernize and tidy up the rapidly expanding metropolis. The latest proposal is to move the markets off the streets altogether. RFI visited the weekly Th

Iraq's Kurdish region has long been the country's success story. It is secure, stable and its oil-based economy is booming. Optimists like to say the autonomous territory will become the Middle East's "next Dubai." Like Dubai, the region's capital, Erbil, is awash with imported goods and American-style malls. RFI's reporter was surprised to discover that a run-down second-hand market is quickly becoming the most popular shopping area in town.