A model presents a creation by designer Lynn Siregar from her brand Weddingku Gallery during Tokyo Modest Fashion Show, Muslim fashion show, at Halal Expo Japan in Tokyo, Japan, November 22, 2016.

Reports from Iraq suggest that as many as five Japanese are among those detained after the fall of an “Islamic State” stronghold near Mosul. Why did they leave safe and peaceful Japan to live in a war zone?

Love, romance and a dash of heartache have made their stories extremely popular. As Cecelia Ahern publishes her 12th novel, “The Marble Collector,” here are a few more successful writers of the genre.

Kurdish Peshmerga female fighters march during combat skills training before being deployed to fight the Islamic State at their military camp in Sulaimaniya, northern Iraq September 18, 2014. © Reuters/Ahmed Jadallah

Shiwa left her home country Iran to fight against “Islamic State” because she believes their ideology goes totally against women’s rights. She feels it’s her duty to try to stop them. Listen to her story here!

Bangladeshi Author Taslima Nasreen

How does it feel when you are not allowed to say what you think? Many authors have left their country because they received death threats, and some were killed. Read more here!