Middle East and North Africa
Iraq: Escalating violence and sectarian division
What do the recent deadly attacks in Iraq tell us about the country today? It has been nearly ten years since the US-led invasion and nearly a year since the last foreign troops withdrew. But is there anything about the state of the country they left behind that can begin to explain this recent wave […]
#FCBBCA: In conversation with Yosri Fouda – Egypt after Mubarak
Renowned Arab journalist Yosri Fouda will be discussing the events that led him to this conclusion in the wake of President Hosni Mubarak’s downfall and discussing how the Egyptian people have responded to the life sentence handed down to Mubarak for complicity in the deaths of protesters and their expectations following the presidential elections.
Rebuilding Libya
On 15 February 2011, inspired by their Tunisian and Egyptian neighbours, the people of Libya took to the streets in Benghazi calling for the end of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi’s brutal regime.
Join us at the Frontline Club to discuss the task of rebuilding Libya a year after the uprising began. We will be looking at the work of the National Transitional Council (NTC) and the tensions that remain. What are the prospects of a peaceful future?
Insight with Wadah Khanfar former director general of Al Jazeera
Former Director General, Wadah Khanfar, will be joining us at the Frontline Club in conversation with Channel 4 News presenter Jon Snow to discuss the rise of Al Jazeera, the role he played in its development and where it can go from here.
FULLY BOOKED Egypt: After a year of military rule, what next?
Tuesday 25 January 2011 has become enshrined in Egypt’s history as the ‘day of rage’ when people took to the streets against the tyranny and oppression of President Hosni Mubarak’s regime. As we approach the one-year anniversary of that day we will be joined by a panel of Egyptians to discuss the hopes of that day and the challenges that lie ahead.
REACTIVE: The battle for press freedom in Iran
Almost two weeks after their arrest, little has been heard about the fate of the six Iranian filmmakers who are currently being held in Tehran’s notorious Evin Prison with no access to their lawyers.
Accused of collaborating secretly with BBC Persian and illegally supplying content portraying Iran in a negative light, they have been condemned as “a group of terrorists, Bahais, communists and devil worshippers” by Iran’s Minister of Intelligence.
Join us at the Frontline Club for this reactive briefing to discuss the detainment of the filmmakers, the battle for press freedom in Iran and the regime’s relationship with foreign media.
Insight with Kamin Mohammadi: Rediscovering Iran
When nine-year-old Kamin Mohammadi fled to London with her family in June 1979 escaping Iran after the revolution that brought down the Shah little was she to know that she would not step foot in the country again for 17 years.
She will be joining us at the Frontline Club in conversation with Pooneh Ghoddoosi from BBC Persian TV to talk about her journey back to her homeland to find the family she left behind, and to rediscover her Iranian identity after 17 years away from the country that she loved.
As an Iranian exile living in Britain, Mohammadi struggled to fit in. She will be joining us at the Frontline Club to talk about her journey back to her homeland to find the family she left behind, and to rediscover her Iranian identity after almost 18 years away from the country that she loved.
FULLY BOOKED Insight with Leila Ahmed: A Quiet Revolution
Leila Ahmed was raised in Cairo in the 1940’s, by a generation of women who never dressed in veils and headscarves. To them, they seemed irrelevant to both modern life and Islamic piety. Today, the majority of Muslim women throughout the Islamic world again wear the veil. Why, Ahmed asks, did this change take root so swiftly, and what does this shift mean for women, Islam, and the West.
Leila Ahmed, who is the Victor S. Thomas Professor of Divinity at the Harvard Divinity School, will be joining us at the Club in conversation with Azadeh Moaveni, Iranian-American writer, journalist and author of Lipstick Jihad, to discuss her new book A Quiet Revolution: The Veil’s Resurgence, from the Middle East to America and her surprising discoveries about Muslim women, Islamism and democracy.
FULLY BOOKED On the media: what does the future hold for Arab state media?
Join us at the Frontline Club when we will be discussing what the future holds for state media, the impact of channels such as Al Jazeera and BBC Arabic, and the ways that people are using the internet and other social media to circumvent that power.
First Wednesday: Foreign policy, diplomacy and the new world order
With people movements rising up across the Middle East and North Africa the US, the UK and other European powers have had to think fast, abandoning old friends and allies and attempting to form new alliances with emerging leaders. Join us with Paddy O’Connell of BBC Radio 4’s Broadcasting House to discuss the new political landscape and the challenges it represents – have the rules of engagement changed or is the West trying to play the same game with different players?
FULLY BOOKED Insight with Ahdaf Soueif: The spirit of revolution in Egypt
Egyptian author, political and cultural commentator Ahdaf Soueif will be joining us in conversation with BBC presenter Mishal Husain, to discuss her experiences at the heart of the protest in Tahrir Square during those momentous 18 days, looking at the roots of the pro-democracy movement and addressing the question of where her country goes from here.
First Wednesday: People, Protest and Democracy in the Middle East and North Africa
As protests continue across the Middle East and North Africa, March’s First Wednesday event will be an opportunity to discuss the Libya crisis and take stock of events elsewhere in the region.
After the troops have gone: What now for Iraq?
After seven years, billions of dollars, as many as 100,000 civilian deaths and more than 4,000 US troops killed – President Barack Obama is finally pulling US troops out of Iraq. Following Barack Obama’s recent statement confirming the end of US combat operations in Iraq, we will be debating the implications for the Iraqi people and the soldiers that serve there.
Focus on Iran: Detainment and conviction
Join us at the Frontline Club to examine the situation for foreigners and Iranians that are detained and convicted in Iran. Should the international community be putting more pressure on the Iranian government to justify their actions?
First Wednesday: Iran, democracy and an international war of words
Join us for another of our First Wednesday discussions: lively public meetings that bring together experts and commentators and mix their views with contributions from our audience. We’ll be discussing the domestic and international challenges facing modern Iran.
FULLY BOOKED Avi Shlaim in conversation with Shlomo Sand
Avi Shlaim, professor of international relations at Oxford will be in conversation with Shlomo Sand, professor of contemporary history at Tel Aviv University, at the Frontline Club for a seminal evening of discussion.
Avi Shlaim’s new book, Israel and Palestine focuses on the causes and consequences of the Israeli-Palestine conflict, while Shlomo Sand’s international best-seller The Invention of the Jewish People unravels the mythologised history of the Jewish people.
First Wednesday: Iran’s nuclear programme
Ahead of the next round of talks later this month, a distinguished panel of experts will be discussing the Islamic republic’s controversial nuclear programme at the Frontline Club.
Join us to discuss the state of play following diplomatic talks in Geneva between Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council. What can be expected of the 25 October talks? Will re-elected president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad respond positively to Barack Obama’s appeal to Tehran that it “unclench its fist” or could we be facing a nuclear arms race that will threaten the future of the Middle East and beyond?
Paddy O’Connell will be moderating the second of these fast-paced dynamic debates.
NEW REACTIVE Iran’s presidential elections
Join us at the Frontline Club where a panel of experts will discuss the presidential election of 12 June and its aftermath. With Hossein Mousavi calling for the results to be annulled and protests against the re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad continuing in Tehran in defiance of a government ban, the panel will assess the […]
Media Talk: Gaza – Missiles and Messages
With the war in Gaza drawing to a close as Operation Cast Lead comes to an end and Israeli troops withdraw, we reflect on the role that the world media played as a legitimate weapon in both Hamas and Israel’s arsenal. While both sides have been intent on trying to win the media war, restricted […]
FULLY BOOKED – Media Talk: Obama on the Middle East – From Rhetoric to Reality
Download this episode View in iTunes As Obama prepares to take office as the 44th US president, he is set to face huge challenges in the Middle East. Will the renewed emphasis on diplomacy that he is proposing with the region pave the way for improved relations with Iran and prevent them from developing their […]
Media Talk: Iraq – A Fragile Sovereignty
As Iraq’s roller coaster ride continues, the next six months will be crucial in determining the future shape of the nation. The two forthcoming elections, the US election in November and the Iraqi provincial elections in October, along with US-Iraqi agreements over long-term commitments and legal status for military personnel and contactors, have major implications for the besieged state and its people.
Media Talk: Lebanon – Civil War or Ceasefire? FULLY BOOKED
Do recent developments in the region allow us to draw any conclusions about the future of Israel, Lebanon, Syria and Hizbollah and the wider Middle East?
Insight with Professor Shai Feldman: Israel at Sixty – What Chance for Peace?
May 14th marks the 60th anniversary of the State of Israel. We talk to Professor Shai Feldman, one of the world’s leading experts on the Middle East, who talks about the political and ideological challenges that face Israel in its 60th year.
Media Talk: Iraq – Five years of Occupation
Five years after the invasion and the beginning of the occupation, has the situation in Iraq changed for the better or worse. Who are the winners and losers of the Iraq war?
Insight with David Horovitz – editor-in-chief of The Jerusalem Post
David Horovitz, editor-in-chief of The Jerusalem Post, talks about the Middle East and the Israeli media.
Media Talk. Iraq Surge: ‘Real Gains’ or Fiasco?
With the death toll rising and sectarian violence apparently worsening in Iraq, pressure is building for American and British troops to withdraw sooner rather than later even general Petraeus agrees, but for a different reason.
Insight with Henry Hemming: The Middle East as Art Project
British artist Henry Hemming travels to the Middle East in search of artistic inspiration and finds more than a conflict zone.
Media Talk: Is the international community worsening the situation in Palestine?
As the conflict between Hamas and Fatah divides Palestine further we look at whether the international community has helped or hindered solutions to the crisis.
Insight with Jeremy Bowen: Six days; forty years on; how many more decades of conflict?
The veteran BBC correspondent talks to Sheila MacVicar (CBS) about the war that reshaped the Middle East in just six days and how forty years on it is still defining the region.
Media Talk: Is nationalism on the rise in Turkey?
Join us as we discuss nationalism and freedom of expression in Turkey in the wake of the assassination of the Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink