News
Video: Mexico’s Rivera murals get restoration treatment
Anyone with even a passing interest in Latin American art and culture will have heard of Diego Rivera, the Mexican painter and muralist. Rivera, who is credited with being one of the founders of the Mexican muralist art movement, was also an active communist and the husband of the equally famous Mexican artist, Frida Kahlo. […]
Amanda Lindhout in TV plea
Amanda Lindhout, the Canadian journalist kidnapped in Somalia in August 2008, has reportedly made a plea over the telephone to Omni TV. The heart wrenching plea was broadcast earlier today in Ontario. Lindhout complains of stomach problems, dentistry issues and is worried she may die of illness or be killed by her captives. The kidnappers […]
Blogging NATO Sec General calls for openness
NATO’s new Secretary General, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, has used a video blog to call for NATO to be "as open and transparent as possible". Fogh Rasmussen, who took up his post on Saturday and has been outlining NATO’s strategic priorities today, said he wants to use the blog "to have a discussion" about the security […]
Discussing ‘The Ministry of Defeat’ at the Frontline Club
Last week, Defence of the Realm blogger Richard North dropped by struggled down from Bradford to London to discuss his book on Britain’s deployment in Iraq. Focussing on one of his specialities – procurement and provision of equipment for British troops – North painted a bleak picture of the Ministry of Defence and media coverage […]
Stranded in Somaliland
Alarmed by the recent infringements on press freedom in Somaliland I decided to find and join the union for journalists in the country. I applied to SOLJA… No that’s not slang for an armed group but the actual acronym of the Somaliland Journalists Association. When I picked up the letter confirming my membership I was […]
Somaliland Hires Freelance Diplomats
by DAVID AXE Somaliland, population 1 million, is a fully autonomous — but unrecognized, internationally — region of the Republic of Somalia, with its own laws, courts, currency and army. It’s also one of the handful of “unofficial” countries in the world that has few full-time diplomats, and so hires freelancers to sit at the […]
Exported toxic waste going back to the UK
The toxic waste found in 41 containers in the Santos port in the Southeast of Brazil must be shipped back to the UK by next Tuesday. The material is being loaded in a ship today at the same port. The shipment was authorized by federal judge André Muniz Mascarenhas de Souza, who considered Brazil must […]
Tensions rise but Lebanon’s only invasion is by tourists
The sun is shining and Beirut’s streets are busier than ever. Thousands of Europeans and Americans have gambled on the New York Times’ recommendation, Arabs from the Gulf have tightened their belts and chosen to vacation closer to home, and CNN is running reports on Beirut being the best party city in the world. Times […]
2 Rifles in Helmand
I tweeted about this a couple of days ago, but if you haven’t yet latched on to Michael Yon’s latest reports and photography from Afghanistan then you should do so now. And while we’re on the ‘blogging from Helmand theme’, this collection of British Commanders’ Diaries from Operation Panther’s Claw is also worth checking out.
Insight into The Times’ Afghanistan debate
Earlier today I ‘sat in’ on The Times’ liveblogging debate about whether the war in Afghanistan is winnable. The Times have been experimenting with Cover It Live for a while now, but haven’t put it to use to cover defence issues until today (as far as I’m aware). The debate featured Defence Editor, Michael Evans, […]
U.S. Trains South Sudan Air Experts?
by DAVID AXE The U.S. Air Force Special Operations School in Hurlburt, Florida, last week launched its inaugural "Building Partner Aviation Capacity Course." The training course in basic aviation planning "included representatives from the U.S., Costa Rica and Sudan," the Air Force reported. Costa Rica, sure. But Sudan? Since Washington does not have formal military […]
Here’s What I Won’t Miss
NAIROBI LETTER: THE POLICEMAN tucked his AK-47 under his arm and swaggered out of the dark towards the door of my car. As he reached my open window though, it became clear that his lurching walk was not so much of a swagger as a stagger… You can read the rest in yesterday’s Irish Times
The Worst Book on Uganda Ever?
Well that’s blown it. There’ll only be one book on Africa that anyone buys this year, Jane Bussmann’s comedy romp through Uganda in pursuit of the Lord’s Resistance Army and John Prendergast. Now I’m all for irreverent humour and bad taste jokes in the cause of satire. But this review in The Guardian makes the […]
What’s in a name? Everything, apparently…
The South Caucasus is a fractured region divided by ethnic fault lines and devastated by three frozen conflicts. With most people in the region looking to the past rather than the future, writing on the three republics which make up the region can therefore be very problematic indeed, and especially with an Armenian name. Forget […]
Things I’ll Miss
As I pack up ready to leave Nairobi, these are the things I’ll remember fondly "How are you?" – it only takes a few seconds, but how much nicer to preface each encounter with a friend or stranger with a short enquiry into their wellbeing or news Monkeys – they may have nicked bananas and […]
Settling into Hargeisa
After a long journey via Dubai I landed in Berbera airport and made the 3 hour bus journey to Hargeisa. It was a hot, bumpy but a scenic ride. My arrival here seems to have coincided with the high profile and deeply concerning case of two journalists who were arrested on the 13th July. The […]
Endorsements
So the second draft is done. There is more editing ahead, and the afterword will probably be redone to take account of ongoing developments in Darfur. But the back is broken, the end is in sight etc. My publisher has read the manuscript. But she knows what to expect. There are typos, occasional bouts of […]
Australian PM meets mother of kidnapped journalist
The mother of Nigel Brennan, the freelance photojournalist who was kidnapped in Somalia in August 2008, has met with Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd. According to Sky News Heather Brennan made an unexpected approach to Rudd when she approached the PM as he was visiting Queensland today. She spoke with him for twenty minutes, "These […]
Republic of Facebook
Following the beating and arrest of two youth activists and bloggers in Baku, who were using new media as well as Facebook to spread their ideas among their followers, the local online community has exploded in a way that prompted support from global community ifor the arrested bloggers and in general, the freedom of speech […]
Speculation, misinformation and irresponsible journalism rife ahead of possible Karabakh deal
Talk of a possible framework peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan should be cause for good news in most countries facing an uncertain future, but nothing is ever simple or even logical in the South Caucasus. Ethno-nationalism and distorted, usually subjective, versions of history are common and politically expedient forces will exploit any issue in order […]
Choose the best photojournalism of the decade
Photo District News is seeking an answer one of journalism’s great subjective questions: what are the best news photographs of the current decade? PDN’s 30th anniversary issue will honor your choice of the most memorable and influential photographs of the last decade in every genre. Readers’ selections will be reproduced in the January issue of PDN and on our Web […]
A Tale of Two Mayors: Who is the Mayor of London?
If I am not mistaken, then I think that the Mayor of London is ought to be Boris Johnson nowadays. Without checking any online news or information sources, looking up any official websites – I can recall that it should be Boris Johnson. I clearly remember when he was elected – people were talking whether […]
Heading to Hargeisa
For the first time in 20 years I am packing my bags to make the journey back to Somalia, a country I called home. To be precise, I am going to Somaliland, the autonomous northern region which established its own local government in 1991 though it remains internationally unrecognized. There is so much historical context […]
Getting It Wrong in Somalia Over and Over Again
Al Shabaab is a nasty, thuggish organisation that started as a protection unit for visiting al Qaeda operatives and has today morphed into a network of clan-based Islamist militias, which controls a good chunk of southern, central Somalia. It has imposed its own brand of brutal Sharia law on its enemies – and its supporters. […]
From Colombia: multinational mining company accused of hiring paramilitaries
Article written by my good friend, independent journalist Manuel Rueda Over two hundred Colombians have placed a lawsuit at an Alabama district court against a Birmingham-based Drummond coal company for financing right wing death squads in Colombia. Drummond runs an open pit coal mine in the northern Cesar department, where paramilitary groups assassinated hundreds of […]
Arses for Africa
Can’t believe no-one brought this little fundraising gimmick to my attention earlier. The manufacturers have the following helpful tip for getting your message across with this tasteful thong Panty-minimalists love our casual thong that covers sweet spots without covering your assets; putting an end to panty-lines. This under-goodie is "outta sight" in low-rise […]
Video petition for detained Azeri youth activists, bloggers (updated)
In a little under 9 hours at time of writing, an appeal to consider the case of Adnan Hajizade and Emin Milli, two youth activists and video bloggers in Baku, Azerbaijan, will be heard. Sentenced to two month’s pre-trial detention under what many consider to be fabricated and politically motivated charges, the appeal should […]
The Moleskine and Me
I have a Moleskine notebook. I know this because I found it in my notebook drawer as I cleared it out the other day. It was lying next to all my other notebooks. Unlike my other notebooks – filled with untidy shorthand, illegible phone numbers and doodles – my Moleskine is completely empty. I bought […]
Desert night hike to meet Baluch guerillas
While people who fled from the fighting in the Swat Valley begin travelling back to their homes, another conflict in Pakistan is often overlooked. The south-western province of Baluchistan makes up nearly half of the country. It’s capital Quetta is synonomous these days with al Qaeda and Taliban leadership. It shares a border with Iran […]
The Tanks That Won’t Go Away
Well this is awkward, isn’t it? You may remember that last year Somali pirates captured a ship loaded with 33 T-72 tanks, which the Kenyan government went to great lengths to deny were destined for its friends in south Sudan (arming one side or the other being in breach of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, unless […]
