Afghanistan

Tuesday 28 April 2015, 7:00 PM

Insight with Christina Lamb: Farewell Kabul

For over two decades, Christina Lamb has reported from Afghanistan, with unparalleled access to all key decision makers. She has developed an extensive understanding of the country, the people and the conflict. She will be joining us in conversation with BBC Radio 4 Today programme presenter, Sarah Montague, to give her personal account of the longest war fought by the United States in its history, and by Britain since the Hundred Years War.


February 26, 2015

Afghanistan: Lessons Of War

By Isabel Gonzalez-Prendergast On 25 February, a panel of experts convened at the Frontline Club for a discussion on the war in Afghanistan and its ongoing legacy. Chaired by BBC Afghanistan correspondent, David Loyn, the debate spanned the period from 11 September 2001 to the present day.


February 26, 2015

World Stories: bringing documentaries to “the poorest people”

By Javier Pérez de la Cruz “What World Stories and the Why Foundation are doing is bringing very important, powerful documentaries to greater attention and to international audiences,” said Richard Porter, controller of BBC World Service English, on Tuesday 24 February at the Frontline Club. The event marked the launch of the World Stories series, an […]


Wednesday 25 February 2015, 7:00 PM

Afghanistan: The Lessons of War

In late October, Camp Bastion – Britain’s biggest overseas base since World War Two – was handed over to Afghan control, marking the end of 13 years of British combat operations in Afghanistan. We will be joined by those who served in Afghanistan and the journalists who covered the country, to take a comprehensive view of the conflict from its inception after 9/11 to the withdrawal. Looking at the decisions that were made and the consequences of those actions, we will be examining the lessons that should be learned by British and Coalition forces.


November 26, 2014

Hunting for Osama bin Laden

By Robert Van Egghen “How can you have a war on terror when terror is a tactic?” asks one of the American counter-terrorism analysts interviewed in Greg Barker‘s new film, Manhunt, about the decade-long hunt for Osama bin Laden, which was screened at the Frontline Club on Monday 24 November. Director Greg Barker joined the […]


June 30, 2014

Ground Zero at the Frontline Club

By Richard Nield A compelling Frontline Club event on Wednesday 25 June showcased film and photographic work from across the globe that revealed both the depth of suffering and the strength of human spirit in some of the world’s most devastating internal conflicts. Featured at the event was a series of photographs from Tim Freccia in […]


May 1, 2014

A Thousand Times Good Night: A life in conflict

By Ratha Lehall On Monday 28 April, the Frontline Club hosted a fully booked preview screening of the feature film A Thousand Times Good Night, which was followed by a Q&A with the film’s director, Erik Poppe, moderated by Gavin Rees from the Dart Centre Europe. The film, which stars French actress Juliette Binoche, tells […]


April 3, 2014

Who will lead Afghanistan?

By Alex Glynn ‘What next for Afghanistan?’ asked a panel of experts at the Frontline Club on 2 April, in an event in partnership with BBC World Service, that looked at the possible outcomes of the upcoming election. There was a certain measured optimism in the response to this question from the panel and a […]


March 27, 2014

2014 Afghan Presidential Candidates

By Elliott Goat As Afghanistan gears up for a pivotal presidential election, on Wednesday 2 April we will be bringing together a panel of experts to take an in-depth look at the candidates and the challenges that await them. For further details see HERE. Ahead of this First Wednesday debate, here is a run down […]


Wednesday 2 April 2014, 7:00 PM

First Wednesday: Who will lead Afghanistan?

This event is organised in partnership with BBC World Service.
As Afghanistan gears up for a pivotal presidential election we will be bringing together a panel of experts to take an in-depth look at the candidates and what they are offering.


February 3, 2014

An Evening of Shorts: Documenting the Past and Its Memories

By Antonia Roupell On Friday 31 January, the audience was taken on a cinematic journey of insights from Tibet, Japan, Romania, Afghanistan and the UAE during an evening of Shorts at the Frontline Club. The selection showed five very different but equally compelling short documentaries. This time the films provoked thoughts on the consequences of tourism on ancient […]


January 30, 2014

Small Communities, Big Mountains: The Future for Afghanistan’s Rural People

By Lizzie Kendal On Wednesday 29 January, the Frontline club hosted another packed Afghanistan-focused event. Journey to the Roof of the World was a photography event hosted in partnership with Port Magazine and featured a discussion between French photographer Frédéric Lagrange and Rory Stewart MP, chaired by The Independent’s defence correspondent, Kim Sengupta. 


Tuesday 11 March 2014, 7:00 PM

In the Picture: Afghanistan – A Distant War

Renowned photojournalist Robert Nickelsberg will be joining us to discuss his latest book. Afghanistan – A Distant War presents an extraordinary portfolio of the country’s history, from the mujahideen’s expulsion of the Soviet Union to the US withdrawal 25 years later.


Wednesday 29 January 2014, 7:30 PM

In the Picture: Journey to the Roof of the World

This event is organised in partnership with Port Magazine. In late winter in 2012, following in the footsteps of Eric Newby, French photographer Frédéric Lagrange journeyed to the foothills of the Hindu Kush. Lagrange will be joining us in a discussion chaired by the The Independent’s defence correspondentKim Sengupta and featuring Rory Stewart MP, whose 32-day solo walk across Afghanistan in early 2002 was the basis for his first book, The Places in BetweenLagrange will present his work and they will discuss the fears and concerns he heard from the Wakhi people about the upcoming Nato withdrawal and an uncertain future.


September 18, 2013

The Afghanistan Debate

By Dan Tookey The Frontline Club abandoned familiar digs in Paddington on Tuesday 17 September in favour of the packed Shaw Theatre on the Euston Road. In partnership with BBC World Service for Afghanistan, they brought together five leading experts on Afghanistan to discuss the country’s recent past and near future.


September 5, 2013

Intervening in Syria: Not Another Iraq or Afghanistan

By Jim Treadway “It’s a town hall style meeting – we quickly come to you,” BBC 4‘s Paddy O’Connell told a sold-out First Wednesday audience at the Frontline Club yesterday evening.  The topic was intervention in Syria, and with four experts by his side, O’Connell led a lively back-and-forth with the night’s attendees. “Here we […]


Tuesday 17 September 2013, 7:00 PM

The Afghanistan Debate

This event is in association with BBC Service for Afghanistan. It will be held at the Shaw Theatre, 100-110 Euston Rd, London, NW1 2AJ.

As the final stage of the withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan begins, we will be bringing together leading experts to look at the country’s roadmap and the legacy of the past 12 years.


July 4, 2013

Talking to the Taliban

by Sally Ashley-Cound The Taliban have made steps towards wanting to be seen as a legitimate political force, by setting up an operations office in Qatar on 18 June this year. The First Wednesday discussion chaired by Paddy O’Connell at the Frontline Club on 3 July asked: Is talking to the Taliban a solution? John D McHugh, […]


July 3, 2013

‘You don’t have to be hit by a bullet to be a victim of war’: Reflections of Gino Strada, war surgeon

By Helena Williams “You don’t have to be hit by a bullet or step on landmine to be a victim of war.”


June 14, 2013

US Foreign Policy – overwhelmed by its own eloquence?

By Caroline Schmitt A president’s second term is usually regarded as the one in which he has the potential to reinvent the world. On 13 June, a panel chaired by author and journalist Michael Goldfarb explored the foreign policy legacy of the Obama administration. Kim Ghattas, BBC State Department correspondent and author of The Secretary: A Journey with Hillary Clinton […]


Tuesday 2 July 2013, 7:00 PM

Gino Strada in conversation with Giles Duley: Reflections of a War Surgeon

Since Italian NGO Emergency was established in 1994 it has provided free, high quality health care to more than 5,200,000 victims of war, landmines and poverty. It is with great pleasure that we welcome its founder Gino Strada to the Frontline Club, he will be talking to photographer Giles Duley about his life and work as a war surgeon and founder of Emergency.


Tuesday 18 June 2013, 7:00 PM

Screening: The Network + Q&A

Unique, uplifting and heartbreaking, The Network tells the story of Afghanistan’s first independent television network – TOLO TV – and the people behind it. With over 800 Afghans employed producing news, current affairs, drama, comedy, music, and lifestyle programmes, the whole team face their biggest challenge with the impending withdrawal of foreign troops. The screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Eva Orner.


Friday 17 May 2013, 7:00 PM

Screening: Shorts at the Frontline Club

Join us for an evening of short documentaries, from different parts of the world, covering a wide range of topics. Shorts at the Frontline Club showcases moving, striking and funny films, exploring the different faces of documentary.


April 13, 2013

Dirty Wars: Jeremy Scahill investigates from Afghanistan to Yemen and the US Congress

by Sally Ashley-Cound On Friday 12th April the Frontline Club hosted the first UK screening of Dirty Wars; author and investigative reporter Jeremy Scahill‘s chilling account of his journey from a remote corner of Afghanistan to Yemen, the American Congress and Somalia as he investigated the rise of the Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC). Producer […]


April 12, 2013

North Korea tensions, China GDP, Thatcher funeral, Italian presidential politics, and Friends of Syria – the world next week

By Jasper Wenban-Smith, international editor of ForesightNews. A round up of world news in the week ahead from journalist resource ForesightNews. Monday 15 April North Korea marks the anniversary of the birth of the country’s founder (and grandfather of its current leader) Kim Il-sung. There has been much speculation that the current regime may be […]


April 11, 2013

The unreported price of war

By Natricia Duncan The occurrence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) amongst soldiers is being downplayed, claims author and former Territorial Army soldier Jake Wood. “When I got back from Afghan we had this briefing and it said that 99.9 per cent of soldiers will not suffer from PTSD. Clearly that’s bollocks” he said in a […]


March 15, 2013

World week ahead: Pope Francis’ inauguration, Obama’s first trip to Israel, ceasefire in Turkey, and Musharraf return to Pakistan

By Jasper Wenban-Smith, international editor of ForesightNews. A round up of world news in the week ahead from journalist resource ForesightNews. Monday 18 March On Monday, the UN Human Rights Council will formally consider a highly critical report on Israeli settler activities that was published at the end of January. Meanwhile, in Yemen a national […]


March 11, 2013

Afghani children held hostage in the drug trade

By Nishat Ahmed Children pay the heaviest price for Afghanistan’s drugs trade – according to a powerful account by journalist Najibullah Quraishi and producer Jamie Doran in their documentary Opium Brides. Opening to a packed screening at the Frontline Club on Friday 7 March, the film exposed the failure of the Afghan government and its […]


Wednesday 10 April 2013, 7:00 PM

Soldiers’ Traumas – From World War Two to Afghanistan

Connecting the lives of soldiers in the Second World War and today in Afghanistan, veteran journalist and writer, Charles Glass and former soldier Jake Wood will be joining us to talk about their respective works, Deserter and Among You. Chaired by Frontline Club founder, Vaughan Smith.


February 26, 2013

Mission accomplished? Weak police as the allies retreat from Afghanistan

By Alex Glynn Reporter Ben Anderson joined a panel at the Frontline Club on Monday 25 February to discuss his new 30-minute documentary for BBC’s Panorama on the allied troops’ legacy in Afghanistan and the condition of the Afghan police. Will Pike, a former British Army Major in Afghanistan, and Dawood Azami, former BBC World Service Bureau Chief in Kabul, joined Anderson to […]