Middle East and North Africa
Our Women On The Ground
Nineteen Arab women journalists speak out about what it’s like to report on their changing homelands in this first-of-its-kind essay collection. In their own words, they talk about what it’s like to report on conflicts that, literally, hit close to home. Join the discussion between Zahra Hankir, Zaina Erhaim and moderator Clarissa Ward.
Erdogan Rising: What next for Turkey and the West?
The original modern populist, Recep Tayyip Erdogan is a complex, polarising figure who mastered macho divide-and-rule politics a decade and a half before Donald Trump cottoned on. Many believe he has used it to lead his country – a young democracy on the fringe of Europe – into spiralling authoritarianism. As president, he commands a […]
Jack Straw and The English Job: Why Iran Distrusts Britain
With tensions rising sharply between Iran and the west following President Trump’s decision to withdraw from the 2015 nuclear deal, we welcome Jack Straw to the Frontline Club for a timely discussion with journalist and author Ramita Navai about British-Iranian relations, his view of Iran’s internal politics and the culture, psychology and history of a much-misunderstood nation.
New Reporting Frontiers: OSI, Airstrikes and Civilian Harm
Meet some of the world’s leading Open Source Investigations teams to discuss the groundbreaking techniques being used to support and strengthen reporting of civilian harm in conflicts worldwide. Times senior foreign correspondent Anthony Loyd will be joined by Chris Woods, Director of Airwars, Bellingcat’s Yemen reporter Rawan Shaif and Milena Marin, project lead for Amnesty Decoders.
Watch the video stream of New Reporting Frontiers: OSI, Airstrikes and Civilian Harm
Iraq: A State of Mind – Screening + Q&A
BBC Arabic returns to the Frontline Club for an exclusive screening of ‘Iraq: A State of Mind’ followed by a Q&A with Director Namak Khoshnaw and Head of Documentaries Christopher Mitchell.
Travels Through A Middle East in Revolt: An Evening with Emma Sky and Lyse Doucet
According to Emma Sky, the Middle East is in a ‘Time Of Monsters’. Where have these monsters come from? Join us for an evening with two regional experts with diverse experiences to dig deeper into the origins, complexities and fallout of these forces at large in the Arab World – and their relationship with Europe and beyond.
Watch the video stream of In a Time Of Monsters with Emma Sky and Lyse Doucet
Rania Abouzeid in conversation with Lyse Doucet
Rania Abouzeid will be discussing her new book No Turning Back: Life, Loss and Hope in wartime Syria with journalist Lyse Doucet.
Athens Event – Screening: MOSUL + Q&A
The Frontline Club in partnership with the Foreign Press Association of Greece will be screening MOSUL, by Olivier Sarbil and James Jones followed by a Q&A with Olivier and James at the Romantso in Athens.
How to Report on the Middle East
Join our panel to discuss how Anglo-American mainstream media is consistently mis-understanding Muslims and the Arab world in its reporting. The discussion will look into how the UK and US must do more to recognise the diversity between nations in the Middle East.
The Balfour Declaration: 100 Years On
To mark the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Balfour Agreement, The Frontline Club will be hosting an evening of discussion, exploration and analysis into the significance and impact of this document in the shaping of the Middle East, from 1917 to present.
Partner Event: The Mediterranean, Europe’s Frontline with Africa
The Mediterranean Growth Initiative and the International Crisis Group will be hosting an event at the Frontline Club. The panel will explore how the economics of conflict could and is causing a crisis in the region, and how this should serve as a bellwether for the rest of the Union.
The Al Jazeera Case
The recent call for the closure of Al Jazeera has been a wake up call for the world of journalism. With one of the largest Arab journalistic voices under threat, join us for a panel discussion on the recent events in Qatar, the wider consequences for the future of journalism on a global scale and the controversies around the network. We will be LIVE STREAMING this event on our Facebook page.
Freelancer on the Frontlines Screening + Q&A Jesse Rosenfeld
Join us for the screening ‘Freelancer on the Frontlines’ which follows the life and work of journalist Jesse Rosenfeld, followed by a Q&A with Jesse himself.
Canadian freelance reporter Jesse Rosenfeld has made the Middle East the focus of his work, and to make a living he has to keep up with constantly moving news targets. Freelancer on the Front Lines follows his journey across the region, showing us thorny geopolitical realities shaped by the events transforming the Middle East and exploring how journalism practices have changed in the age of the internet.
Screening: Letters from Baghdad + Q&A
Letters from Baghdad is the story of a true original — Gertrude Bell — sometimes called the “female Lawrence of Arabia”. Voiced and executive produced by Academy award winning actor Tilda Swinton, the film tells the dramatic story of this British spy, explorer and political powerhouse. Bell traveled widely in Arabia before being recruited by British military intelligence during WWI to help draw the borders of Iraq. This unforgettable documentary takes unique look at both a remarkable woman and the tangled history of Iraq, while transporting us into a past that is eerily current.
In Conversation with Patrick Cockburn: The Age of Jihad
Since 2014 the rise of Daesh (ISIS) has shaken the stability of the Middle East and led to a climate of unease in Europe. As the crisis in the region deepens and Daesh continues to recruit members from abroad, Western leaders remain torn on tactics for battling the militant group. His newest book, The Age of Jihad: The Islamic State and the Great War for the Middle East, Patrick Cockburn presents a compelling new analysis of the dominant conflict of our time; the Sunni – Shia war and the subsequent origins of Daesh. Cockburn will join us to discuss in depth the current turmoil in the Middle East and the role the West has played in the region from 2001 to present.
The New Odyssey: The Story of Europe’s Refugee Crisis?
Europe is experiencing a wave of migration not seen since the end of World War II. Forced out of their homes by terror and war in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, pulled to Europe by the prospect of a better life, huge numbers are risking everything in perilous journeys across land and sea.
Joined by the Guardian‘s inaugural migration correspondent Patrick Kingsley, whose new book The New Odyssey documents these journeys, we will explore what failures lead to the current crisis and what needs to be done to avert it.
Holy Lands: Sectarianism in the Middle East
Sectarian divides increasingly fuel conflict across the diverse countries of the Middle East, spilling over borders and contributing to ongoing violence in Syria, Iraq, Yemen and elsewhere. Yet in the nineteenth century the region was considerably more tolerant than Western Europe at the time; a high degree of religious pluralism and self-determination were permitted across the Ottoman Empire’s wide-reaching territories. We will be joined by The Economist‘s Jerusalem correspondent Nicolas Pelham and others to discuss the roots of sectarian violence – as well as hopes for recovery from conflict and a return to plurality.
Preview Screening – Mission Critical: Afghanistan + Q&A
This screening will be followed by a Q&A with reporter Abi Austen, director Will West and producer Shoaib Sharifi.
Abi Austen served for over four years in Kandahar, Afghanistan, as both a British army officer and as a senior advisor to the US army. In February 2015, she returned to Kandahar with Unreported World to discover just what is going wrong with President Obama’s plan. In this remarkable and eye-opening film, Austen discovers on the frontline that the war in Afghanistan is now at a tipping-point. Her film poses a question for the world: will the West’s legacy in Afghanistan survive, and is that struggle still worth fighting for?
Screening: Yallah! Underground + Q&A
This screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Farid Eslam via Skype.
From the early days of the Arab Spring that sparked hopes for change to the years of instability and political tension that followed, this enthralling documentary follows the stories of young prominent underground artists from across the Middle East during the period of 2009 to 2013.
BookNight with James Rodgers
For October’s BookNight we are pleased to welcome an author and journalist, James Rodgers, who will present his book Headlines from the Holy Land over an intimate dinner with Frontline Club members. Starting from a historical perspective, Rodger’s latest book identifies the challenges the conflict presents for contemporary journalism and diplomacy, and suggests new ways of approaching them.
First Wednesday: After the Deal – Iran, the Region and the West
After years of negotiating world powers have reached a historic deal with Iran, limiting their nuclear activity in return for the lifting of international economic sanctions. For the first First Wednesday after the summer break we will be debating what the Iran deal means for the country, the region and relations with the West.
Emma Sky: The Unravelling of Iraq
By Alexandra Sarabia On Wednesday 20 May, a conversation between Emma Sky and The Guardian’s Middle East editor, Ian Black, drew a packed house to the Frontline Club. Interested audience members and former colleagues of Sky were present to listen to the highly-regarded Iraq expert, and to celebrate and discuss her latest book, The Unravelling: High Hopes and Missed Opportunities […]
Pure Imagination: Saudi Arabia in Peril?
By Elliot Goat The greatest peril comes not from a lack of analysis but from a lack of imagination.” – Sir William Patey, British Ambassador to Saudi Arabia (2007-10)
Charlie Hebdo attacks: “Blasphemy is a fundamental prerequisite of revolution”
By Richard Nield In a debate at the Frontline Club on 16 January 2015, in the aftermath of the attacks on the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo on 7 January, a panel of expert commentators strongly backed the continued promotion of free speech and warned against responding to the attacks with a curtailment of rights and liberties. Members of the […]
Gerard Russell on the Disappearing Religions of the Middle East
By Francis Churchill “It’s just useful when we see today the narrative of conflict to remember that it was actually possible for faiths to coexist quite remarkably,” said Gerard Russell, referring to Baghdad in c. 800 C.E. On Tuesday 13 February, the former United Nations and British diplomat joined an audience at the Frontline Club […]
Insight with Gerard Russell: Journeys Into the Disappearing Religions of the Middle East
The Middle East has long been home to many varied and distinctive faiths that have learned to survive the perils of attacks and assimilation, but today with the region in turmoil they face greater threats than ever before. In conversation with The Guardian‘s Middle East editor, Ian Black, former diplomat and author of Heirs to Forgotten Kingdoms, Gerard Russell, will be taking us on a journey across the past and present of the Middle East, into the religious communities that have survived for centuries and talking about what needs to be done to ensure their future.
Iraq on the Brink
By Elliott Goat “This started before Maliki and will go on long after Maliki.” – Hayder al-Khoei
Lawrence of Arabia: The making of a romantic hero and a troubled Middle East
By Alex Glynn With the Middle East currently seeming to reject the artificial lines drawn by Europeans after WWI, veteran correspondent Scott Anderson was joined by journalist and author Christopher de Bellaigue at the Frontline Club on 25 March to discuss how much the romantic historical figure of T. E. Lawrence shaped the region. This is the basis for […]
Insight with Scott Anderson: War, Deceit, Imperial Folly and the Making of the Modern Middle East
As one of Britain’s most romantic historical figures the story of Lawrence of Arabia is well known, but to what extent do we know the truth of how his actions shaped the region? In his new book Lawrence in Arabia: War, Deceit, Imperial Folly and the Making of the Modern Middle East, veteran correspondent Scott Anderson cuts through the legend to offer a reassessment of his story and the secret colonialist plots in which he was involved. Anderson will be joining us in conversation with journalist and author Christopher de Bellaigue, to share his retelling of Lawrence of Arabia, reflecting on the actions of the past and how they continue to shape the region and its future.
The New Middle East: Why would you expect it to be easy?
By Caroline Schmitt During a conversation with BBC Arabic’s Samir Farah on 15 October, the BBC’s former Middle East Bureau Chief Paul Danahar gave the audience at the fully-booked Frontline Club a first-hand regional snapshot of the post-Arab Spring Middle East. One of the conclusions Danahar has drawn in his recent book The New Middle East: The […]
