Top Middle East photos from 2016

For the Middle East, Afghanistan and Pakistan, 2016 was a year of grueling warfare.

It saw the campaign against the Islamic State group gain momentum, with international coalitions or local forces pushing back their territory in Iraq, Syria and Libya. But the militants also lashed back. They carried carried out a spectacular truck bomb attack on a shopping mall complex in Iraq as people prepared for the Muslim holiday Eid. Their Egypt branch carried out a similarly brazen suicide attack at Cairo's main cathedral.

Operations to wrest the group from Mosul, their last major stronghold in Iraq, began in October. But the fight has bogged down in tough urban warfare. And in Syria, the fight against IS was eclipsed by the brutal last days of the rebel-held enclave in Aleppo, which fell to government forces after weeks of siege.

Mercifully, 2016 also brought opportunities for people to gather for sacred days and in celebration of their daily lives.

Here is a selection of top 2016 photos from AP photographers across the region.

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A car bomb explodes next to Iraqi special forces armored vehicles as they advance towards Islamic State militant- held territory in Mosul, Iraq, Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2016. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Fire and smoke rise after a Saudi-led airstrike hit a site believed to be one of the largest weapons depots on the outskirts of Yemen's capital, Sanaa, Friday, Oct. 14, 2016. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)

In this Wednesday, March 16, 2016 photo, a Muslim man performs Zikr, or remembrance of god, as he celebrates a Moulid, which commemorates the birth of Sayeda Nafisa, a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad through his grandson Hasan, in front of the mosque named after her, in Cairo, Egypt. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)

In this Sunday, Dec. 4, 2016 photo, Amina Hamawy cries after she returned to her looted home in the Hanano district of eastern Aleppo, Syria. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

An Iraqi woman grieves at the scene after a truck bomb attack in Karradah, a busy shopping district in the center of Baghdad, Iraq on July 3, 2016. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban)

An Egyptian Coptic nun weeps as she looks at damages inside the St. Mark Cathedral in central Cairo, following a bombing, Sunday, Dec. 11, 2016. The blast at Egypt's main Coptic Christian cathedral killed dozens of people and wounded many others, according to Egyptian state television, making it one of the deadliest attacks carried out against the religious minority in recent memory. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)

An Iraqi man looks for victims at the site of a car bomb attack at a commercial area in Karradah neighborhood, Baghdad, Iraq, Sunday, July 3, 2016.(AP Photo/Hadi Mizban)

In this Friday, Feb. 12, 2016 photo, an Iraqi pantomime prepares for a show, in Diwaniyah, Iraq. Pantomimes expressed resentment and anger over the economic and political situation using their art for show on the streets of Iraq. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban)

In this Saturday, July 9, 2016 photo, Asal Ahmed, 4, is carried by her father at the scene of a massive suicide truck bomb attack in Karada, Iraq. Asal and her mother were badly burned as they shopped for the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban)

Kayaks, 7, poses for a picture holding a toy gun in a camp where Christians displaced by Islamic State militants are living, in Irbil, Iraq, Friday, Dec. 23, 2016. Iraq's Christians are marking the holiday in this camp for displaced people with a sense of worry and despair, unable to return to their towns they were forced to flee two years ago by the Islamic State group's onslaught. (AP Photo/Manu Brabo)

Israeli Arabs stand under a waterfall during the Eid al-Fitr holiday at the Gan HaShlosha national park near the northern Israeli Town of Beit Shean, Friday, July 8, 2016. Eid al-Fitr marks the end of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

In this Thursday, Oct. 13, 2016 photo, an Egyptian woman hangs her laundry over a mural by Egyptian artist Omar El Fayoumi in Burullus, north of Cairo, Egypt. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)

Iraqi women wait to hear about family members who went missing after a car bomb hit Karada, a busy shopping district in the center of Baghdad, Iraq, Sunday, July 3, 2016. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban)

A family grieves over the grave of a family member at a graveyard damaged by Islamic State extremists in Qayara, some 31 miles, 50 km, south of Mosul, Iraq, Thursday, Oct. 27, 2016. (AP Photo/Marko Drobnjakovic)

A Peshmerga convoy drives towards a frontline in Khazer, about 30 kilometers (19 miles) east of Mosul, Iraq, Monday, Oct. 17, 2016. (AP Photo/Bram Janssen)

Palestinian students march during sunset in a display of their military skills at Al-Rebat College for Law and Police Science in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2016. Al-Rebat College for Law and Police Science was established by the Hamas government in 2009. The college has some 200 students who study for four years to join the security forces in Gaza strip. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

Syrian children who were displaced with their family from eastern Aleppo play in the village of Jibreen south of Aleppo, Syria, Saturday, Dec. 3, 2016. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Iranian Shiite Muslims pray as they place the Quran on their heads at the graves of soldiers who were killed during 1980-88 Iran-Iraq War, at the Behesht-e-Zahra cemetery, during the holy fasting month of Ramadan, just outside Tehran, Iran, Monday, June 27, 2016. Iranian Muslims spent the night in prayer and devotion commemorating Laylat Al Qadr, or the Night of Power, which is the anniversary of the night that Muslims believe Prophet Muhammad received the first revelation of the Quran by the angel Gabriel. Ramadan is an Islamic holy month of fasting in which Muslims are expected to abstain from food, drink smoking and sex during daylight and to focus on spirituality, good deeds and charity. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

A woman fires into the air at a Popular Mobilization Units base south of Mosul, Iraq, Sunday, Nov. 20, 2016. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

A sniper from Misrata fires towards Islamic State militant positions in Sirte, Libya, Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016. (AP Photo/Manu Brabo)

A Pakistani police officer fires tear gas shell to disperse crowd protesting against the government in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Friday, Oct. 28, 2016. Pakistani police have charged with batons and fired tear gas at stone-throwing supporters of cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan who are rallying in Islamabad in defiance of a government-imposed ban on demonstrations. (AP Photo/B.K. Bangash)

In this Sunday, Dec. 18, 2016 photo, a member of the Iraqi Special Forces shoots his machine gun against an Islamic State militant drone n the al-Barid district in Mosul, Iraq.(AP Photo/Manu Brabo)

A Syrian army soldier places a Syrian national flag during a battle with rebel fighters at the Ramouseh front line, east of Aleppo, Syria, Monday, Dec. 5, 2016. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Migrating Cranes flock to the Hula Lake conservation area, north of the Sea of Galilee, northern Israel, Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2016. About 42,500 cranes are in Hula Lake conservation area. More than half a billion birds of some 400 different species pass through the Jordan Valley to Africa and go back to Europe during the year. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

This Sunday, Dec. 18, 2016 photo shows a drawing of Mickey Mouse with its face painted over by Islamic States militants on the wall of a kindergarten n the al-Barid district in Mosul, Iraq. (AP Photo/Manu Brabo)

Internally displaced people flee fighting between Iraqi forces and Islamic State militants on a road in eastern Mosul, Iraq, Tuesday, Nov. 15, 2016. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

Mourners carry the body of Muhey al-Tabakhi, 12, during his funeral in the West Bank town of Al-Ram, near Jerusalem, Wednesday, July 20, 2016. A Palestinian hospital official says the boy was killed after clashes erupted between Israeli forces and protesters in the West Bank. Ramallah hospital director Ahmad Bitawi says the boy was killed by a bullet to the chest. Israeli police deny that live fire was used against protesters.(AP Photo/Nasser Shiyoukhi)

In this Thursday, Sept. 17, 2015, file photo, a worker looks at a chocolate factory destroyed by a Saudi-led airstrike in Sanaa, Yemen. Businesses worth millions of dollars have sustained major destruction in Yemen's year-long conflict either by the Saudi-led coalition targeting Shiite rebels or ground fighting and random shelling by the rival parties, an international rights group said. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)

A girl hiding behind a blanket looks as Iraqi special forces enter her house while advancing towards Islamic State militant-held territory in Mosul, Iraq, Friday, Nov. 18, 2016. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

In this Monday, Jan. 18, 2016 photo, Iranian rock climber, Farnaz Esmaeilzadeh, scales a climbing gym in the city of Zanjan, some 330 kilometers (207 miles) west of the capital Tehran, Iran. Esmaeilzadeh, 27, who has been climbing since she was 13, has distinguished herself in international competitions despite the barriers she faces as a female athlete in conservative Iran. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

Iranians spend time in Urmia Lake near Urmia, North-western Iran, Friday, Aug. 26, 2016. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

In this picture taken on Thursday, Dec. 1, 2016, an Iranian woman covers herself with a blanket due to the cold, while visiting Khour salt lake during her tour of the Mesr desert about 305 miles (500 kilometers) southeast of the capital Tehran, Iran. Deserts make up parts of Iran which have recently become tourist destinations for young Iranians looking for a break on their weekend. The increase in tourists to the desert has stimulated economic growth in the area. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

Iraqi internally displaced groom Jassim Mohammed walks with his bride, Amena Ali, during their wedding ceremony at a camp for internally displaced people, in Khazir, near Mosul, Iraq, Thursday, Dec. 8, 2016. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban)

A wedding gown stands in a beauty parlor damaged in clashes between Iraqi security forces and Islamic State fighters in Bartella, Iraq, Saturday, Oct. 22, 2016. (AP Photo/Marko Drobnjakovic)

Iraqi displaced people plead for food during an aid distribution in Khazer camp for the displaced in Iraqi Kurdistan, Iraq, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016. As Iraqi forces settle into a routine of slow, steadier progress inside Mosul, more civilians remain trapped living along front lines for longer. (AP Photo/Manu Brabo)

Contestants in the first Miss Trans Israel beauty pageant practice the walk on the stage during rehearsal in Tel Aviv, Israel, Thursday, May 26, 2016. The pageant will be held at HaBima, Israel's national theater, in Tel Aviv on Friday. Tel Aviv has emerged as one of the world's most LGBT-friendly travel destinations, standing in sharp contrast to most of the rest of the Middle East, where gays can face persecution. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

Israeli Arab boys jump into the Mediterranean sea from the ancient wall surrounding the old city of Acre, northern Israel, Tuesday, Aug. 2, 2016. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

A martial looks through the early morning fog which delayed the 1st round of Dubai Ladies Masters golf tournament in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2016. (AP Photo/Kamran Jebreili)

U.S. President Barack Obama touches the flag-draped coffin of former Israeli President Shimon Peres during his funeral at the Mount Herzel national cemetery in Jerusalem, Friday, Sept. 30, 2016. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Iranian Shiite Muslims mourn after covering themselves with mud during Ashoura rituals, in Khorramabad, Iran, Wednesday, Oct.12, 2016. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)

In this Saturday, April 23, 2016 photo, Eritrean Christian Orthodox migrant women attend a mass at a makeshift church in Tel Aviv, Israel. Hundreds of faithful gather each week in the makeshift churches. With its walls bedecked with Christian paraphernalia, it is an unlikely scene in the heart of the Jewish state, hidden in a non-descript building in hardscrabble south Tel Aviv. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

A Pakistani Christian wears mask while participating in a peace rally in connection with a Christmas celebration, in Karachi, Pakistan, Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2016. Although Pakistani Christians are in the minority, Christmas is a national holiday and is observed across the country as an occasion to celebrate. (AP Photo/Shakil Adil)

Tattoo artist Hussein Al-Hussein inks the chest of client Alodi Issa, 22, with Shiite Muslim religious slogans at his tattoo shop in a southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon on July 22, 2016. The tattoo in Arabic reads, "Oh, the revenge for Hussein. Ali, Fatima." A growing number of Shiite Muslims in Lebanon are getting tattoos with religious and other Shiite symbols since the civil war in neighboring Syria broke out five years ago, fanning sectarian flames across the region. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Mourners walk past the Israeli barrier as they carry the body of Muhey al-Tabakhi, 12, during his funeral in the West Bank town of Al-Ram, near Jerusalem, Wednesday, July 20, 2016. A Palestinian hospital official says the boy was killed after clashes erupted between Israeli forces and protesters in the West Bank. Ramallah hospital director Ahmad Bitawi says the boy was killed by a bullet to the chest. Israeli police deny that live fire was used against protesters.(AP Photo/Nasser Shiyoukhi)

A Pakistani lights lamps in tribute to Pakistan's renowned social worker and legendary philanthropist, Abdul Sattar Edhi, in Karachi, Pakistan on July 12, 2016. (AP Photo/Shakil Adil)

A damaged bench inside the St. Mark Cathedral in central Cairo, following a bombing, Sunday, Dec. 11, 2016. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)

A Shiite re-enacts the events of Ashoura while Iranian and Iraqi Shiite Muslims mourn in a procession in southern Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2016. Shiites mark Ashoura, the tenth day of the Muslim month of Muharram, to commemorate the martyrdom of Imam Hussein, a grandson of Prophet Muhammad and one of Shiite Islam's most beloved saints, during the 7th century Battle of Karbala in present-day Iraq. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

A rainbow shines in the sky above the city following a rainstorm, in Beit Lahiya City, Gaza Strip, Thursday, Dec. 8, 2016. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

The sun sets over the the Giza Pyramids, near Cairo, Egypt, Friday, Aug. 19, 2016. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)

A damaged clock and Coptic clergyman at the scene inside the St. Mark Cathedral in central Cairo, following a bombing, Sunday, Dec. 11, 2016. The blast at Egypt's main Coptic Christian cathedral killed dozens of people and wounded many others, according to Egyptian state television, making it one of the deadliest attacks carried out against the religious minority in recent memory. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty)

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