Middle Eastern citizens discuss Donald Trump

US President Donald Trump will visit Saudi Arabia and Israel, two bastions of relative calm in the war-battered Middle East, when he begins his first foreign trip this weekend.

In much of the region, authoritarian governments duel for power with political Islamists and militants as rival creeds and ethnic groups vie for dominance.

Yemen, Syria, Libya and Iraq are riven by wars. Israel and the Palestinians are still locked in their decades-old struggle, while Bahrain rumbles with unrest.

All 50 Muslim states whose leaders Trump will meet in the Saudi capital Riyadh are menaced by the rise of Islamic State, also known as ISIS or Daesh. He has promised to rid the world of the scourge of "radical Islamic terrorism".

Attitudes towards Trump are coloured by the actions of his first four months in power. Among them: his attempt to ban citizens of six mostly-Muslim countries from travelling to the United States; his decision to launch cruise missiles against a Syrian airbase to punish Damascus for a chemical weapons attack; and his decision to arm Kurdish militias fighting IS in Syria.

In short interviews, residents of the Middle East from all walks of life tell Reuters what they expect of Trump.

Marla Awad

Fine arts graduate Marla Awad, who works at an import and export company, poses for a photograph outside a pub in Old Damascus, Syria, May 15, 2017. "What matters to me was one very negative decision - his refusal to allow the Syrians to immigrate to America in a racist way, because travelling to it was a dream for me to fulfil my ambitions to study and work," Awad said.

Djamel Bouktech

Djamel Bouktech, 66, a dates seller poses for a photograph at his shop in the old city of Algiers, Algeria, May 17, 2017. "I think itÕs just a simple courtesy visit because the Arabs of the Middle East are and will always be friends and strong allies of the USA. They have common interests also," Bouktech said. "This will have a positive effect for the allies of the USA and negative for the others in the Middle East in the long term because of the fragility of the region."

Ali Bassem

Ali Bassem, 26, a member of Iraqi Emergency Response Division force, poses for a photograph at a front line during clashes with Islamic State fighters in western Mosul, Iraq, May 16, 2017. "He is a hero. He got Daesh out of Iraq. He is cooperative with the Iraqi people and we and the Americans are one nation. We are brothers," Bassem said.

Hidya Muhyiddin

Crafts salesman Hidaya Muhyiddin, 35, poses for a photograph in Erbil, Iraq, May, 14, 2017. "Trump should take speedy decisions, and for Kurds, they are oppressed and America has the right to arm them and support them militarily and financially. America must help Kurds not only in Syria but in all Kurdish areas," Muhyiddin said.

Somar Hazim

Somar Hazim, 35, poses for a photograph inside his pub in Old Damascus, Syria, May 15, 2017. "The change is his Syria policy based on interests, in the sense that there's no clear methodology," Hazim said. "As for the issue of arming the Kurds, I do not oppose this as long as the goal is fighting a common enemy for the Syrian state, which is Daesh, provided that these weapons are not exploited to create a partitioned idea of Syria."

Anonymous female fighter

Anonymous female fighter from the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) poses for a photograph at a training camp in the southern Gaza Strip, May 14, 2017. "Trump is a man of war, he works on spreading war, chaos and killing among people. Like other presidents who came before him, I do not see he will bring about peace or any good to the Palestinian people," she said. "I see that there is another war coming."

Lara Shahin

 

Lara Shahin, 35, a Syrian refugee, poses at a workshop run under Jasmine, a project which hires and trains Syrian refugee women to create handicrafts, in Amman, Jordan, May 16, 2017. "Trump's decision to strike at the air base was a surprise move that raised my hopes the US President will take bolder decisions in future that would end President Bashar al-Assad's rule and allow me to return home to a democratic country," Shahin said.

Abdulaziz al-Anbari

 

Abdulaziz al-Anbari, 32, poses for a photograph at a shopping mall in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, May 15, 2017."I think Trump as a Republican president will help improve relations with the Gulf states, especially Saudi Arabia. I do not want to commit on Trump's policy in Syria and arming the Kurds now. Let's wait and see what comes from his visit," al-Anbari said.

Sherine Haji

 

Sherine Haji, 23, a Kurdish female fighter from the People's Protection Units (YPG), rests in a hospital in Qamishli city, Syria, May 16, 2017. "The plan to arm the YPG is a decision taken late. We have experienced many heavy battles. If this support was happening in the first place, the advances would have been quicker. We would not have to sacrifice many lives," Haji said. "Now I'm wounded, I've lost two legs, but rather than aching because of my pain, I'm worried for my people. This must end, no one else should be in pain. There must be free and peaceful life in this country."

Ovad Chen

 

Ovad Chen poses for a photograph at his falafel shop in Jerusalem, May 16, 2017. "I see myself as a very simple person and I believe that at the end of the day, God controls everything. Therefore, it doesn't really matter what Trump is saying or doing in the Middle East or anywhere else," Chen said. "Even if we might think people are in any sort of control or power, this is all an illusion. God is the real king."

George Gharib

 

George Gharib poses for a photograph at his accessories shop in Beirut, Lebanon, May 15, 2017. "I do not expect any change in American policies towards the region, especially since President Trump is committed to moving the US embassy to Jerusalem and there is no intention to pressure Israel," Gharib said. "He will be like all previous presidents who came before him with bias and abiding by Israeli interests."