Items by Rob Crilly

South of West

• The True Horror of Madrassah Zakarya

  Posted: December 19, 2011, 8:52 am by Rob Crilly

  Last week police in Karachi raided a madrassah on the city’s northern outskirts. The local police commander was at dinner but received a phone call from his boss that a TV station was running reports of boys in chains. When … Continue reading →

• Faces of Lahore

  Posted: December 16, 2011, 5:01 pm by Rob Crilly

  Was a little shocked travelling through Lahore the other day to see an image of Osama bin Laden adorning the back of a rickshaw, until it was pointed out to me that it was an advert for a book. Seconds … Continue reading →

• Twitter and the President’s Health

  Posted: December 9, 2011, 8:29 am by Rob Crilly

  There are numerous lessons to draw from President Zardari’s sudden dash to Dubai for medical treatment: 1) Pakistan loves a conspiracy – no need to elabourate 2) Pakistan’s government lacks a co-ordinated media operation – at first officials said Zardari … Continue reading →

• Deja Vu and Diplomatic Showbiz in Bonn

  Posted: December 5, 2011, 9:01 am by Rob Crilly

  Even before Islamabad decided it would not attend the international conference on Afghanistan, the local media had already made up their mind on its value, describing it as The Bonn Moot, presumably with as much power to effect change as … Continue reading →

• Saving Darfur is now available for kindle

  Posted: December 4, 2011, 3:53 pm by Rob Crilly

  It’s a couple of years since I left Nairobi. I spent five years living there and travelling around east Africa. And this past week I’ve watched (for the umpteenth time) Pole to Pole, Michael Palin’s trip from north to south, … Continue reading →

• A Deliberate Act of Aggression?

  Posted: November 29, 2011, 5:39 pm by Rob Crilly

  If you’re struggling to understand quite what’s going on in Pakistan at the moment, there was a lovely, illuminating quote in the Wall Street Journal yesterday… Gen. Kayani’s ability to accede to U.S. demands is greatly limited by events like … Continue reading →

• Pakistan’s Papers React to Cross-Border Strike

  Posted: November 27, 2011, 10:40 am by Rob Crilly

  Even by the standards of recent Pakistan-US relations, the killing of as many as 25 Pakistani soldiers by Nato-led forces yesterday can only send an already fragile alliance into a tail spin. Islamabad has closed its land crossings to Nato … Continue reading →

• The Selected Library of Christopher Hitchens (Possibly)

  Posted: November 22, 2011, 10:23 am by Rob Crilly

  I’m a big fan of Christopher Hitchens. So when I stumped up a hefty wodge of cash for his latest collection of columns I was pleased to find the dust cover showed the author standing in front of his book … Continue reading →

• Man Marries Goat (again)

  Posted: November 21, 2011, 9:52 am by Rob Crilly

  Interesting analysis of Facebook’s seamless sharing by the FT last week. Hat tip @mikewhills  Apparently, old stories are being rediscovered as they go viral for the first time… Throughout this week, most or all of the “most shared” and, by … Continue reading →

• War Reporting for Newbies

  Posted: November 15, 2011, 3:43 pm by Rob Crilly

  It was a conversation we returned to many times as we sipped caffe macchiatos in Benghazi’s Ouzu hotel back in March. I would sit in the evenings with pals – mostly old Africa hands who had learned their trade covering … Continue reading →

• My Reading List for Future Journalists

  Posted: November 4, 2011, 3:47 pm by Rob Crilly

  The Columbia Journalism Review has a reading list for aspiring journalists, recommended by writers, journalists and acdemics. Of the 48 titles, I have read two – On Writing by Stephen King and the second volume of George Orwell’s collected essays. … Continue reading →

• Poor Report Card in Afghanistan

  Posted: October 7, 2011, 12:18 pm by Rob Crilly

  Today marks the 10th anniversary of the US-led invasion of Afghanistan. And the progress reports are not good. I’ve listed some of the pieces around this week here, using the delicious stacks tool. But possibly the most damning progress report … Continue reading →

• Is Pakistan a State Sponsor of Terrorism?

  Posted: September 27, 2011, 10:25 am by Rob Crilly

  The past fortnight has seen a sharp increase in tension between the US and Pakistan. Relations were already at a low during a year in which a CIA operative shot dead two men in Lahore and US special forces flew … Continue reading →

• Defending Israeli Interests at the United Nations

  Posted: September 21, 2011, 10:38 am by Rob Crilly

  Interesting addition this week of all weeks to the latest, six-monthly edition of Barack Obama’s Fact Sheet: Advancing U.S. Interests at the United Nations. There is a new section entitled “Defending Israel”… When an effort was made to insert the … Continue reading →

• Coltan and Gorillas

  Posted: September 20, 2011, 10:55 am by Rob Crilly

  Thoroughly enjoyed Sam Kean’s The Disappearing Spoon: And Other Tall Tales from the Periodic Table, but the following on how coltan is killing gorillas in the Democratic Republic of Congo rather pulled me up short In just hours, a farmer … Continue reading →

• The Stuff I Forgot

  Posted: September 10, 2011, 10:16 pm by Rob Crilly

  Above is a pic I did a few months ago of the kit I was taking on the road for a particular trip. This time I forgot a load of things: Prescription sunglasses – brilliant because it means that you … Continue reading →

• Some More Thoughts on Humanitarian Intervention

  Posted: September 9, 2011, 11:00 am by Rob Crilly

  I was for intervention in Iraq. Opposed to intervening in Darfur. In favour of getting involved in Libya. But Syria doesn’t seem such a good idea. Watching from the ground as Nato has bombed Gaddafi from power has crystallised for … Continue reading →

• Safari Soundtrack: The Road to Sirte

  Posted: September 8, 2011, 2:00 am by Rob Crilly

  Back on the road today. The deadline for negotiations on Sirte is Saturday so it’s time to take a look and gauge the temperature at the front line. That means about a five-hour drive. The only problem is that my … Continue reading →

• Kindle: Great App for Journos on the Road

  Posted: September 7, 2011, 1:11 pm by Rob Crilly

  Four weeks ago I headed off from my base in Islamabad to Turkey on assignment. In my bag was sufficient reading matter for the week or so I thought I’d be away: Ed: The Milibands and the Making of a … Continue reading →

• Timing is Everything: The Opposition’s Move to Tripoli

  Posted: September 6, 2011, 3:10 pm by Rob Crilly

  If there was one lesson to be learned from the Iraq war it is that a political vacuum must be avoided at all costs. Libya’s new leaders know this and have made all the right noises about moving to the … Continue reading →

• Spotted: Stobart Truck in Libya

  Posted: September 3, 2011, 8:40 pm by Rob Crilly

  I wouldn’t say that I’m a petrolhead or a trucking enthusiast. However, I do know that drivers of Eddie Stobart trucks are expected to wear a shirt and tie, and that they are required to return the wave of anyone … Continue reading →

• 10 Top Tips for Libyans at the Fall of Tripoli

  Posted: September 2, 2011, 1:49 pm by Rob Crilly

  The Libya Post published another in its Top Tips series just before the fall of Tripoli: Buy a sheep and get ready for a big BBQ Be sure to stock up on balloons, flares, plastic plates, spoons, knives and forks … Continue reading →

• The Two Sides of Libya’s Rebels

  Posted: September 1, 2011, 3:53 pm by Rob Crilly

  The challenges facing Libya as it tries to build a new government after 42 years of Gaddafi rule were all on display at Benghazi airport last night. A huge RAF jet loomed out of the darkness carrying 40 tonnes of … Continue reading →

• Libya: This Isn’t Over Yet

  Posted: August 31, 2011, 4:28 pm by Rob Crilly

  The newly arrived American journalist had a perfectly reasonable question: How could the rebels have let Gaddafi’s family escape to Algeria? Colonel Ahmed Omar Bani, spokesman for the opposition forces in Benghazi, gave him a withering look. “You might want … Continue reading →

• What’s Algeria Up To?

  Posted: August 29, 2011, 11:54 pm by Rob Crilly

  Some of it I get. Algeria is one of the few regional neighbours who hasn’t recognised Libya’s nascent rebel government. It has clearly been hedging its bets, taking cash and keeping its lines of communications open to the Gaddafis. Maybe … Continue reading →

• Focus on Sirte

  Posted: August 28, 2011, 1:27 pm by Rob Crilly

  Sirte is the focus for rebel forces in the east. Units have been moving slowly towards the coastal city all week, reinforcing with heavy armour and artillery from Brega and – on the western side – fighters from Misrata are … Continue reading →

• I Feel Like Chicken Tonight

  Posted: August 26, 2011, 10:39 pm by Rob Crilly

  Benghazi is like a different city compared with the one I visited in March. It still has its problems – mounds of rubbish are accumulating at the roadside and working traffic lights are scarce – but security is less of … Continue reading →

• The Road to Sirte

  Posted: August 25, 2011, 2:15 am by Rob Crilly

  Back on the road today. And what a familiar road it is. Back in March my fixer, Tam, and I drove up and down the Benghazi to Tripoli road umpteen times charting the rebels’ rapid advances followed by equally rapid … Continue reading →

• Libya’s Government in Waiting

  Posted: August 24, 2011, 10:31 am by Rob Crilly

  If Libya has a government this morning, then it is the rebels’ cabinet in waiting – the executive board or council of the National Transitional Council. But there’s a problem. It was dissolved a fortnight ago and a new one … Continue reading →

• Morning after the night before

  Posted: August 22, 2011, 1:29 pm by Rob Crilly

  It’s a case of the morning after the night before in Benghazi, the rebels’ eastern stronghold. The courthouse square filled with people last night, cheering the last moments of Gaddafi’s regime. Others stayed at home to watch events unfold on … Continue reading →

• Libya’s Rebels – The Questions

  Posted: August 20, 2011, 8:21 pm by Rob Crilly

  The long drive from Cairo to Benghazi gave me plenty of time to reflect on my previous visits here and wonder what might have changed since May. 1. The rebels in Benghazi have always seemed a rag-tag bunch, with little … Continue reading →

• The Road to Benghazi

  Posted: August 19, 2011, 1:03 am by Rob Crilly

  The road from Cairo is long and well, pretty dull. This is roughly the scenery for oooh 13 or so hours, except when it’s dark or you drive past a rather umimpressive stretch of drive-through fast food joints There is … Continue reading →

• Is There a Tougher Job in Pakistan?

  Posted: August 9, 2011, 5:30 pm by Rob Crilly

  Alberto Rodriguez has spent the past year as spokesman for the US embassy in Islamabad. I think even he would admit that the image of the US in Pakistan has gone from trough to trough during his time here, but … Continue reading →

• Lucky Shot or Clever Ambush?

  Posted: August 8, 2011, 3:33 pm by Rob Crilly

  So the Americans are briefing that their Chinook was brought down in Afghanistan by a lucky shot from a Rocket-Propelled Grenade – not exactly the ideal weapon for bringing down aircraft. And hardly something to fret over in future. But … Continue reading →

• Philby’s Expenses

  Posted: July 24, 2011, 10:14 pm by Rob Crilly

  Toby Harnden’s column for Foreign Policy reminded me just how much I love a good expenses claim story. Some of the best come from history, such as Stanley’s rather extravagant quest (just click through the password dialogue box) to find … Continue reading →

• My Social Rules

  Posted: July 14, 2011, 6:33 pm by Rob Crilly

  I’ve been walking into places and saying things for, well, most of my life. And by now I reckon I’m pretty good at it. I’d be pretty irritated if someone now said: Rob, we’ve noticed the proliferation of social situations … Continue reading →

• Pakistan and the US: The Odd Couple?

  Posted: July 12, 2011, 7:57 pm by Rob Crilly

  You’ve got to admire Cameron Munter, US ambassador to Islamabad, for trying. His efforts to inject a bit of humour into a catastrophic period in relations between Pakistan and the US are impressive. After cutting off $800m in aid and … Continue reading →

• My Motorola Xoom: Good but needs more apps

  Posted: July 3, 2011, 2:20 pm by Rob Crilly

  I don’t like Apple. They bring out a music player that locks you into its own online music store and its own music format. They bring out a smartphone, but control the software that goes on it. And so too … Continue reading →

• Postcards from Hell: 10. The Vimto Factor

  Posted: June 30, 2011, 5:39 pm by Rob Crilly

  Foreign Policy’s Failed States index is slightly more sensible this year, although it still rather resembles a random list of shitty countries. At least Pakistan is down to number 12, dropping below Guinea and the Central African Republic. Maybe this … Continue reading →

• ICC Arrest Warrant for Gaddafi

  Posted: June 28, 2011, 10:01 am by Rob Crilly

  A big victory for the human rights campaigners yesterday, as the International Criminal Court in the Hague issued arrest warrants for Colonel Gaddafi and two of his key lieutenants. “Justice must be delivered to the victims of serious human rights … Continue reading →

• A Religious Conversion

  Posted: June 21, 2011, 9:50 am by Rob Crilly

  Not really much to say about the new decoration for bus stops in Islamabad… The spokesman for the authority said it was part of the drive to give the capital “a more creative and Islamic look Nice. And if it’s … Continue reading →

• Ayman al-Zawahiri

  Posted: June 20, 2011, 9:30 am by Rob Crilly

  Stuff I’ve been reading since Ayman al-Zawahiri took over as emir of al-Qaeda Zawahiri at the Helm – Lawrence Wright says al-Qaeda will now turn its focus back towards Eygpt, at a crucial time in the country’s history Osama bin … Continue reading →

• Let Them Eat Cake

  Posted: June 18, 2011, 4:32 pm by Rob Crilly

  So you have a big Union Flag cake to mark the Queen’s 85th birthday and invite Shahbaz Sharif, chief minister of the Punjab, to cut it for you. So far so good. But then he comes towards you with a … Continue reading →

• US Getting Public Diplomacy Wrong in Pakistan

  Posted: June 14, 2011, 10:37 pm by Rob Crilly

  The Americans say all the right sort of things in public, the gentle words that Pakistan wants to hear. They are here for the long haul. They want to rebuild trust. Of course they will work with Pakistan’s security forces … Continue reading →

• A Bold Analysis of the Trouble with Pakistan

  Posted: June 12, 2011, 7:02 pm by Rob Crilly

  Pakistan is many things. A country where terrorists plot attacks against Europe, where a brewery founded by British soldiers produces beer, where software developers top the download charts, where tomorrow’s fast bowlers run through their paces on grass verges, where … Continue reading →

• What’s In My Kit Bag, 2011 edition

  Posted: June 8, 2011, 6:46 pm by Rob Crilly

  Back on the road as my Arab spring turns to summer. So here’s what I’ve brought with me: Timbuk2 laptop bag: tough, hard-wearing and looks pretty cool. Didn’t fancy the flourescent courier-style bag, so I got this classic canvas one … Continue reading →

• Rice

  Posted: June 6, 2011, 6:46 pm by Rob Crilly

  Went shopping in Rawalpindi. Didn’t buy anything. Too much choice. Well, too much choice if it’s rice you want. Have no idea what varieties these are, but they were all grown in Pakistan. Nice.

• The Drones Work

  Posted: June 5, 2011, 3:00 pm by Rob Crilly

  Erm, so this is awkward. On Saturday morning The Wall Street Journal runs a story on splits within the US administration over drone strikes, with the American ambassador to Pakistan, Cameron Munter, or his friends, briefing that he is among … Continue reading →

• What’s so wrong with impunity?

  Posted: June 4, 2011, 3:19 pm by Rob Crilly

  Britain’s Apaches have flown into action, attacking a government checkpoint near Brega, as Colonel Gaddafi clings on desperately to power. In Sudan, an attack by northern forces in a disputed border region scatters more than 80,000 people. And at the … Continue reading →

• Postcards from Hell 9: The Postman

  Posted: May 31, 2011, 10:57 am by Rob Crilly

  Every few days a cheerful chap in uniform riding a motorbike comes to my door. He rummages through his sack and pulls out an envelope addressed to me. OK, it’s usually nothing more exciting than a printout detailing exactly how … Continue reading →

• The cost of pest control

  Posted: May 9, 2011, 10:09 am by Rob Crilly

  Among the many volunteer fighters I met during my first stint in Libya in early March was a young man who said he worked for Rentokil. I made some sort of feeble joke about how his pest control services were … Continue reading →

• Bin Laden reading

  Posted: May 7, 2011, 11:10 am by Rob Crilly

  Here’s stuff I’ve been reading on bin Laden’s targeted assassination, as one of my liberal Israeli friends insists on calling it. It’s not exhaustive, just a list of stuff… Pakistan and Osama bin Laden: How the West was conned – … Continue reading →

• A cracking pork pie

  Posted: May 5, 2011, 9:38 am by Rob Crilly

  When I returned home from my first stint in rebel-held east Libya, the wonderful team of butchers, bakers and magicians at Bray’s Cottage sent me this incredible pork pie. It was like no pie I’d ever tasted before. The pork … Continue reading →

• On being in the wrong place

  Posted: May 3, 2011, 12:40 pm by Rob Crilly

  There’s not much you can do. Sometimes you have to leave your patch. You can’t watch it 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It might be a holiday. Or training. Or it’s an assignment elsewhere in the world. … Continue reading →

• How to Spot a Gaddafi Loyalist

  Posted: April 28, 2011, 1:37 am by Rob Crilly

  I’m enjoying the rash of independent newspapers springing up in free Benghazi. This item in the second edition of The Libya Post caught my eye: 10 top tips to spot if someone is a Gaddafi loyalist rat If you call Gaddafi … Continue reading →

• South Asia Reading Challenge: Beautiful from This Angle by Maha Khan Phillips

  Posted: April 26, 2011, 7:50 am by Rob Crilly

  Review by Bina Shah Beautiful From This Angle, the debut novel by Maha Khan Phillips, is not what it seems to be. The author chooses the well-known chick-lit technique of bringing together three women friends to undergo a transformational experience, … Continue reading →

• Libya Stuff – Intervene or Not?

  Posted: April 4, 2011, 9:20 am by Rob Crilly

  Here’s some stuff I’ve been reading on Libya since getting back, mostly on the debate over intervention… Is Barack Obama Secretly Swiss? The administration’s pathetic, dithering response to the Arab uprisings has been both cynical and naive, according to Christopher … Continue reading →

• Which Side Are You On?

  Posted: March 31, 2011, 3:37 pm by Rob Crilly

  Left and right, capital and labour, and our relationship to both may have been the best way to understand 20th Century politics and to chart solutions to problems. But those days are gone. Thatcher and Reagan changed the political landscape … Continue reading →

• The War of the Road

  Posted: March 29, 2011, 2:31 pm by Rob Crilly

  I spent Sunday, my last day reporting from Libya (for now), chasing the front line. We drove through Ajdabiya, then Brega, then Ras Lanuf but couldn’t move fast enough to find Colonel’s Gaddafi’s retreating forces. Somewhere in front of us … Continue reading →

• Portrait of a Checkpoint

  Posted: March 24, 2011, 9:21 pm by Rob Crilly

  Khalid Saad brought his family to see what all the fuss was about. His three sons, aged 18, 14 and 11, sucked on prickly artichokes as somewhere down the road – not too far away – Libya’s rebel movement probed … Continue reading →

• I’m Not Keen on Chaos

  Posted: March 20, 2011, 10:36 pm by Rob Crilly

  Today, I drove out on the Tripoli road from Benghazi the few miles to where French ground attack planes had taken out Colonel Gaddafi’s armoured column which hours earlier had sent a frightening cascade of artillery into the heart of … Continue reading →

• Battle for Benghazi

  Posted: March 19, 2011, 11:41 am by Rob Crilly

  It came in from the sea, somewhere to the north. At first the residents of Benghazi cheered, believing it would herald the start of air strikes against Gaddafi forces still rumbling towards their city. “Is it European,” shouted one. Then … Continue reading →

• Safari Soundtrack: Desert Sands

  Posted: March 7, 2011, 9:25 pm by Rob Crilly

  Headed for Benghazi, via Lyon, Milan, Cairo and an epic overland safari. So I think that calls for a Safari Soundtrack 24 Hours from Tulsa, Gene Pitney (24 Hours from Tulsa) – or 12 hours from Benghazi. The definition of … Continue reading →

• Roadside Dining in Tunisia

  Posted: March 6, 2011, 10:19 pm by Rob Crilly

  I’m not a great one for being squeamish about meat. I like it and I eat it. If that means an animal has to be killed then, so long as it has been treated humanely, that’s OK with me. I … Continue reading →

• Andrew Mitchell on a Shipping Container

  Posted: March 4, 2011, 5:13 pm by Rob Crilly

  Andrew Mitchell, the international development secretary, arrived at the Ras Jedir border crossing today to announce that Britain was sending more aid. Sky interviewed him on top of a container.

• Crush at Ras Jebir

  Posted: March 1, 2011, 9:12 pm by Rob Crilly

  Things got pretty ugly today. Where yesterday tens of thousands of people stood patiently waiting for their chance to enter Tunisia from Libya, today they surged towards the blue railings and a line of policemen trying to hold them back. … Continue reading →

• The race for Tripoli

  Posted: February 28, 2011, 10:06 pm by Rob Crilly

  It’s beach towels on sunbeds at Ras Jedir, where the world’s media are waiting to see if the Tunisian border with Libya opens up in the same way that Egypt did last week. Once you have your spot, you hold … Continue reading →

• Crisp Diplomacy

  Posted: February 20, 2011, 2:32 pm by Rob Crilly

  Me, I like a packet of crisps. Cheese and onion is my favourite, if you are asking, but generally I need no invitation to sample a new flavour. So I was easily led by Lay’s cricket world cup tie-in, featuring … Continue reading →

• Valentine’s Day: Saints and Sinners

  Posted: February 15, 2011, 8:51 am by Rob Crilly

  Found yesterday’s showering of affection on Mumtaz Qadri rather confusing to say the least… The confessed killer of a liberal Pakistani governor pleaded guilty Monday to a murder he said was justified under Islam, while outside the court supporters bearing … Continue reading →

• TV, Tunneling and Tosh

  Posted: February 14, 2011, 8:49 am by Rob Crilly

  I generally take a dim view of expats that try to recreate home life in their chosen country of work, teaching the staff to cook shepherd’s pie, asking the driver to wear a cap and blazer, QBP (the Queen’s birthday … Continue reading →

• Muddled PR on Raymond Davis

  Posted: February 9, 2011, 5:54 pm by Rob Crilly

  The strange case of Raymond Davis poses some desperately difficult questions for Pakistani and American officials who would all rather like the whole thing to disappear pretty fast. Who the hell is he? What was he doing in Lahore? Why … Continue reading →

• Karachi Literary Festival Stuff

  Posted: February 8, 2011, 4:12 pm by Rob Crilly

  Sorry to have missed the Karachi Literary Festival at the weekend, particularly as there was gossip and backbiting of the highest order on display… along with the books. British officials were aghast that while the Brit High Commissioner’s wife flew … Continue reading →

• Extremism on the streets in Lahore

  Posted: February 6, 2011, 4:17 pm by Rob Crilly

  An unpleasant series of banners and posters dots Lahore, celebrating Mumtaz Qadri, the killer of Salman Taseer, and calling for the death of Asia Bibi, the Christian woman convicted of blasphemy and now awaiting her appeal. Take the example above… … Continue reading →

• On a Lighter Note…

  Posted: February 3, 2011, 11:22 am by Rob Crilly

  Thinks have taken a turn for the worse in Cairo. Pretty miserable scenes last night. So let’s cheer ourselves up: How to write about Egypt: …Whatever you choose, your first paragraph must mention at least one of four things: the … Continue reading →

• Books Stuff

  Posted: February 2, 2011, 8:44 am by Rob Crilly

  The South Asia Reading Challenge continues apace, with a contribution this week from Agnija. My list is finalised (well ish) but came back from London at the weekend with a fresh handful of books on the region, as well as … Continue reading →

• What Sort of Diplomat Carries a Loaded Gun?

  Posted: February 1, 2011, 3:39 pm by Rob Crilly

  It’s difficult to know which country is in more of a tizz, Pakistan or the US, following the arrest of an American “diplomat” for shooting dead two Pakistanis in Lahore last week. It is desperately embarrassing for both and could … Continue reading →

• Arrested American Diplomat

  Posted: January 29, 2011, 1:48 pm by Rob Crilly

  U.S. Embassy Calls for Release of American Diplomat Islamabad, January 29, 2011 – The United States Embassy in Pakistan calls for the immediate release of a U.S. diplomat unlawfully detained by authorities in Lahore. The diplomat, assigned to the U.S. … Continue reading →

• Dial-up to the Rescue in Egypt

  Posted: January 29, 2011, 12:55 pm by Rob Crilly

  This week has seen me sitting on the foreign desk of The Sunday Telegraph, which mean basically monitoring Egypt. There was a moment of panic yesterday when we lost contact with our two correspondents in Cairo. With mobile phones down … Continue reading →

• A Fool and His Money

  Posted: January 27, 2011, 5:36 pm by Rob Crilly

  George Clooney’s Satellite Sentinel Project is beaming back information from the border between north and south Sudan. The first details provide a vivid insight into what is happening there that could have been obtained by, er, just asking someone who … Continue reading →

• How a Fire Extinguisher Might Have Doused the Tunisian Protests

  Posted: January 23, 2011, 12:11 pm by Rob Crilly

  The guards and clerks gathered on the steps of the governor’s headquarters in Sidi Bouzid, laughing and shouting at the fruit peddler outside. As Mohamed Bouazizi climbed atop his fruit cart clutching a plastic bottle of paint thinner they urged … Continue reading →

• Tunisian Food (Part 1, depending largely on how long I am here for)

  Posted: January 20, 2011, 10:51 pm by Rob Crilly

  When it arrived in the empty Tunisian hotel restaurant, looking like an oversized samosa, I was put in mind of nothing more exciting than a Findus Crispy Pancake. Not a great start. But closer inspection revealed that the shell was … Continue reading →

• Turabi’s Web

  Posted: January 19, 2011, 7:55 pm by Rob Crilly

  So Hassan al-Turabi is once more back in prison, something of a home from home for him since he fell out of bed with President Omar al Bashir. Still, it gives him a chance to catch up on his reading. … Continue reading →

• South Asia Reading Challenge: 1. Curfewed Night

  Posted: January 13, 2011, 5:03 pm by Rob Crilly

  Is there a future for foreign correspondents – outsiders who parachute into a war zone, report on what they see, hang around for a bit and then go home? Now that anyone with a laptop and an internet connection (or … Continue reading →

• Postcards from Hell 9: Water Features

  Posted: January 12, 2011, 10:44 am by Rob Crilly

  In my admittedly limited experience, failed states tend not to go in for water features (Somalia’s coastline not being admissible as I’m fairly certain it was there when the country had a functioning government that stretched as far as the … Continue reading →

• South Asian Reading Challenge: Bina Shah’s List

  Posted: January 11, 2011, 11:49 am by Rob Crilly

  Author Bina Shah has signed up to the South Asia Reading Challenge. Here is her list Granta Pakistan The Scorpion’s Tale by Zahid Hussein The Cloud Messenger by Aamer Hussein The Wandering Falcon by Jamil Ahmed Claire Chambers’s book on … Continue reading →

• Stick to Basketball George

  Posted: January 11, 2011, 9:02 am by Rob Crilly

  Sometimes, even I get sick of my own cyncism. Sometimes I make a deliberate effort to be more positive. I bite my tongue when a well-meaning gap year student tells me they’ll be digging latrines in Uganda, where manual labour … Continue reading →

• First list and First Review

  Posted: January 10, 2011, 7:59 pm by Rob Crilly

  OK, so we’re up and running in the South Asia Reading Challenge. We have our first review in, The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini reviewed by Hareem Sumbul Bhatti. And we have our first list in, from Mike Gallagher, who … Continue reading →

• A Haven of Sense

  Posted: January 10, 2011, 12:19 pm by Rob Crilly

  Religious hordes throng Karachi, spewing intolerance, anger and ignorance. Ordinary people – far from extremists – and even supposedly educated lawyers laud an Islamist assassin. The BBC asks whether Pakistan has passed a tipping point. But there is another Pakistan, … Continue reading →

• Sometimes Bashir Knows What He’s Talking About

  Posted: January 8, 2011, 10:40 am by Rob Crilly

  Al Jazeera’s interview with President Omar al Bashir of Sudan just a couple of days before the South votes on secession is making headlines. In it he says that the South will face instability if it chooses independence from Khartoum … Continue reading →

• Pakistan Gears up for UK Beer Wars

  Posted: January 6, 2011, 8:56 am by Rob Crilly

  So what is the British curry lover, in search of the perfect dining experience, to do? You’ve ordered your chicken tikka marsala and need something similarly authentic to wash it down with. If, like me, that means an Indian lager … Continue reading →

• The Wit and Wisdom of Salman Taseer

  Posted: January 5, 2011, 9:05 am by Rob Crilly

  In his own words, 140 characters at a time, here are some of his most acute observations on Twitter in the past few months Apple is worth more than $300bn. In other words much much more than 180mn Pakistanis. Something … Continue reading →

• Salman Taseer

  Posted: January 4, 2011, 6:28 pm by Rob Crilly

  In November a Christian woman was sentenced to death in Pakistan after being convicted of insulting the Prophet Mohammed. It was unusual because Asia Bibi was thought to be the first woman on death row for the offence. On the … Continue reading →

• Referendum Reading

  Posted: January 4, 2011, 9:18 am by Rob Crilly

  Only a few days now to the referendum in South Sudan. Here’s a few things that I have been reading… Clooney Falling into Bin Laden’s Trap – aside from the hysterical and silly language, there is a serious point here … Continue reading →

• South Asia Reading Challenge

  Posted: January 3, 2011, 1:07 pm by Rob Crilly

  One of the joys about moving from Africa to South Asia is the massive array of  writing connected with this part of the world, in contrast with my old home – where the history and legends were passed on by … Continue reading →

• Veggies Not Welcome

  Posted: December 30, 2010, 9:48 am by Rob Crilly

  There’s something almost hypnotic about watching a butcher at work. The blade flashes through the air, cutting expertly at mutton leg and shoulder, carving cubes and chops with a rhythmic thud, thud, thud as knife hits wooden block. As the … Continue reading →

• Postcards from Hell 8: Traffic Wardens

  Posted: December 15, 2010, 5:26 pm by Rob Crilly

  OK, it’s not so much a traffic warden as a bloke with a forklift truck but it’s roughly the same idea. Park in the wrong place and your car will magically have moved by the time you return. It’s not … Continue reading →

• Mr Munter Goes to Lahore

  Posted: December 6, 2010, 2:27 pm by Rob Crilly

  In the interests of underscoring the tightness of relations between the US and Pakistan in the wake of last week’s WikiLeaks revelations, Cameron Munter, the American ambassador to Islamabad, went for breakfast in Lahore with three other Americans. I take … Continue reading →

• Covering Pakistan’s Floods

  Posted: November 30, 2010, 8:32 am by Rob Crilly

  This comparison between money raised for Pakistan and Haiti’s natural disasters this year is pretty stark. As the graphic above shows, the response to Pakistan’s floods was muted compared with the response to Haiti’s earthquake. The analysis of why this … Continue reading →

• Corrections for the Record

  Posted: November 24, 2010, 5:05 pm by Rob Crilly

  Being spokesman for the US Embassy in Islamabad has to be something of a thankless task. Take this offering today… Correction For The Record: No Airstrip On U.S. Embassy Compound Islamabad, November 24, 2010 – There was a story in … Continue reading →

• Peshawar’s Loot

  Posted: November 23, 2010, 10:20 am by Rob Crilly

  The Afghanistan Campaign Medal was created by George W Bush (under Executive Order 13363) in 2004 for American service personnel who have served in Afghanistan (or Afghan airspace) for 30 consecutive days or 60 non-consecutively. It is however much easier … Continue reading →

• Women Cricketers on Top

  Posted: November 21, 2010, 4:06 pm by Rob Crilly

  This cartoon, in today’s Daily Times, nicely sums up the state of Pakistan cricket. The men face an uphill struggle against South Africa, who have declared just shy of 600 runs, so let’s enjoy the success of the women’s team … Continue reading →

• Butt on Haider

  Posted: November 18, 2010, 2:33 pm by Rob Crilly

  To Lahore last week, on the trail of anyone who could shed light on Zulqarnain Haider’s odd defection, and who should I bump into at Model Town Green’s Cricket Club but Salman Butt, the Pakistan cricket captain currently suspended over … Continue reading →

• The Ghee Club

  Posted: November 12, 2010, 8:56 am by Rob Crilly

  Noticed this sign in Lahore yesterday. I’d be interested to know what benefits are available to members. Their website had precious few answers. But I can’t also help thinking that there may well be a good reason why no-one has … Continue reading →

• Sudan: Blimey it’s complicated

  Posted: November 10, 2010, 7:02 pm by Rob Crilly

  Heartened to read a piece in The Christian Science Monitor suggesting that the threat of war in Sudan may have been exaggerated in the run up to January’s referendum… Having listed a series of hyperbollock stories, Maggie Fick, a journalism … Continue reading →

• What I did at the weekend

  Posted: November 7, 2010, 8:24 pm by Rob Crilly

  Spent the weekend watching bull racing in a field somewhere near Gujar Khan. It was quite a thing cheering on the locals as they took it in turns standing on a dustbin lid to be towed (at high speed) behind … Continue reading →

• America’s Not-So-Covert Drones

  Posted: November 2, 2010, 10:36 am by Rob Crilly

  It is difficult to keep a CIA programme “covert” when it involves regularly destroying buildings and cars in Pakistan’s tribal areas. People tend to notice that kind of stuff. And the deaths. However, President Obama’s drones have been exactly that … Continue reading →

• Labels in Peshawar

  Posted: October 27, 2010, 9:43 am by Rob Crilly

  Food aid is desperately limited in its effectiveness. It works in only a few places and under very specific circumstances (PDF) – ie in places where there is no food and people are going to die unless they are handed … Continue reading →

• Postcards from Hell 7: Tomorrow’s Samosa Wrapper

  Posted: October 18, 2010, 10:50 am by Rob Crilly

  The only thing to say to someone who’s reputation has just been besmirched by the British newspapers is “not to worry, it’s tomorrow’s fish and chip paper”. Of course, that’s useless advice now that the Internet gives us a continually … Continue reading →

• Aid and Security in Pakistan

  Posted: October 12, 2010, 7:17 pm by Rob Crilly

  Pakistan is the sort of place where you might not always want to advertise your links to the US. In the past month, American helicopters have killed two Pakistani soldiers, the CIA has stepped up its drone strikes in the … Continue reading →

• Lahore’s Gambling Dens

  Posted: September 21, 2010, 4:38 pm by Rob Crilly

  The directions were vague: drive into Shahnoor, a cluttered corner of Lahore named after a movie studio, where the narrow streets are filled with carts loaded with bananas and motorised rickshaws, then telephone again for more information. After 30 stop-start … Continue reading →

• The Best Spies in the World

  Posted: September 16, 2010, 11:22 am by Rob Crilly

  It has been a pretty thin time for good news in Pakistan. But you can always rely on the country’s famed military establishment to buck the trend. When they aren’t winning plaudits for delivering aid to flood victims, or being … Continue reading →

• What’s with the fake camps?

  Posted: September 13, 2010, 12:51 pm by Rob Crilly

  There has been a lot of coverage of “fake aid camps” here: relief villages that are set up just before the visit of a VIP then whisked away when the politician, diplomat or United Nations official leaves. Last week The … Continue reading →

• Baptism of Fire

  Posted: September 9, 2010, 8:37 pm by Rob Crilly

  You’ve got to respect Baroness Amos. As British High Commissioner to Australia she could have whiled away her days with a spot of tennis followed by gin and tonics on the verandah, occasionally hosting a trade delegation or planning a … Continue reading →

• Angelina Jolie Turns Spotlight back to Pakistan

  Posted: September 7, 2010, 5:01 pm by Rob Crilly

  I’ve got mixed feelings about celebrity advocacy. It’s great when they use their pulling power to highlight a cause. But, as readers of this blog will know, I have reservations about their impact on Darfur, for example, where instead of … Continue reading →

• It’s not about you, George

  Posted: September 5, 2010, 10:11 pm by Rob Crilly

  Poor old George Clooney. While promoting his latest multimillion dollar movie with a string of interviews, he manages to slip in a mention of how the ongoing crisis in Darfur is causing him so much pain… “But in the case … Continue reading →

• Cricket and Conspiracy Theories

  Posted: September 3, 2010, 10:21 am by Rob Crilly

  I’m still on the steep part of the Pakistan learning curve. Even so, after four months it’s pretty clear there are two things that you need to know about in this place: Cricket and conspiracy theories. The two have come … Continue reading →

• Zardari Under Pressure to Send Warning to London

  Posted: July 30, 2010, 6:50 pm by Rob Crilly

  I filed this story last night. It made the front page, but got taken into another story and ended up essentially as a picture caption. It happens…. But anyway, I thought it said something interesting about the way Pakistan works. … Continue reading →

• Pakistan’s Miserable Week

  Posted: July 30, 2010, 9:48 am by Rob Crilly

  Not a great week for Pakistan: Monday: Wikileaks story breaks with hundreds of documents alleging that Pakistan’s intelligence service is working with Taliban and al Qaeda extremists Wednesday: Worst plane crash in country’s history with 152 people dead. David Cameron … Continue reading →

• Sudan’s Groundhog Day

  Posted: July 25, 2010, 11:11 am by Rob Crilly

  Sudan has reappeared briefly in the op-ed pages, first with Dave Eggers and John Prendergast urging US intervention to prevent a return to war following the South’s referendum on seccession. Now Marc Gustafson has responded with a pursuasive argument that … Continue reading →

• Postcards from Hell 6: Cherries in a box

  Posted: July 22, 2010, 10:45 am by Rob Crilly

  I made the mistake of leaving these cherries out of the fridge so they went a bit soft. But the glorious thing is not the cherries themselves, but their packaging. Lined up in neat rows like chocolates in a box, how … Continue reading →

• Postcards From Hell 5: Rose Petals

  Posted: July 19, 2010, 1:32 pm by Rob Crilly

  Baroness Warsi visited her ancestral village yesterday, the place that her father left 50 years ago in favour of England. She received a rock-star reception, with cheering, drumming and great cries of “zindabad”. But the best thing about it was the fistfuls of fragrant … Continue reading →

• Postcards from Hell: 4. Hospitality

  Posted: July 12, 2010, 6:44 pm by Rob Crilly

  This will be old hat to those of you who know Pakistan. But anyone who believes it is a failed state peopled by Western-hating suicide bombers will be surprised to learn that Pakistanis have taken the art of hospitality to … Continue reading →

• Explaining Away Terror

  Posted: July 11, 2010, 10:31 am by Rob Crilly

  Great piece in The Daily Times today by Hasan-Askari Rizvi on the failure of many Pakistani leaders to recognise the domestic nature of terror attacks. Instead they continue to reach for narratives that suggest a global conspiracy against Islam rather … Continue reading →

• Postcards from Hell: 3. The Media

  Posted: July 7, 2010, 7:10 pm by Rob Crilly

  Pakistan’s media houses have plenty of problems. The government is planning new laws that will restrict reporting of terror attacks and limit criticism of government. Reporters face risks every day as they go about their work. So far, six have … Continue reading →

• Postcards from Hell: 2. Murree Beer

  Posted: July 6, 2010, 9:22 am by Rob Crilly

    Murree beer may remind me of sixth form home brew experiments – and I gather their whisky is not what it used to be – but if there’s one thing I know about failed states it’s that they tend … Continue reading →

• Africa United?

  Posted: July 4, 2010, 12:03 pm by Rob Crilly

  I’ll be honest. I love that Shakira song. It’s trite and filled with stereotypes from grass skirts to bumshaking dances – and I know I shouldn’t like it. For as Brendan O’Neill points out at Spiked Online it captures everything that is wrong and patronising about this “African” World Cup… Ever since the opening ceremony, [...]

• 31 Favourite Things About Pakistan: Postcards from Hell

  Posted: June 30, 2010, 10:32 am by Rob Crilly

  Last week Foreign Policy magazine published its Failed States Index. The usual suspects took the top few places but placing Pakistan as the world’s tenth most failed state seemed a little, well, unfair. And so my Pakistani friends thought when we discussed the matter over dinner on Monday night. The misrepresentation of their country in [...]

• Whose Agenda is it Anyway?

  Posted: June 29, 2010, 7:04 pm by Rob Crilly

  Interesting media row bubbling away in Pakistan. This week The Washington Post reports how the American embassy in Islamabad is sending corrections and clarifications to Pakistani media houses. Presumably frustrated at what officials have called “false and malicious” or “a paranoid fabrication”, they have hurtled headlong into a row I suspect they can’t win. In [...]

• Stanley McChrystal Links

  Posted: June 25, 2010, 3:29 pm by Rob Crilly

  Here’s what I’ve been reading: I thought General McChrystal was ‘unfireable’, says Rolling Stone writer – “I think he had been protected by other profile writers in the past, who wanted access,” Hastings said. “I am not an access journalist. That’s not my style.” Hara-kiri through interview? – “The entire episode reminds one just how [...]

• Minding the Language

  Posted: June 24, 2010, 12:23 pm by Rob Crilly

  You don’t have to live in Islamabad long to notice how Pakistani-English has its own charming variations. Some are leftovers of a bygone age. Others are infathomable. And I’m sure there are plenty more to discover… Why not? – the cheery response to any request, no matter how outlandish. Makes the heart warm Miscreant – gentle [...]

• Fragile, Flawed…but Failed?

  Posted: June 22, 2010, 10:43 am by Rob Crilly

  Foreign Policy magazine presents its Failed States Index, with no surprises in the top few places. The list contains my favourite country in Africa and my least favourite, as well as my new home. Somalia – surely the only actual failed state in the list. The government controls almost none of the country, which is [...]

• Taking on the Taliban

  Posted: June 21, 2010, 11:45 am by Rob Crilly

  THE SLIT in the rock wall is not much to look at: A two-foot wide gap that disappears into blackness. But passing through the nondescript entrance opens up a network of caves and a small insight into the world of the Taliban and al-Qaeda in Pakistan’s tribal areas. This was once a subterranean hideout. The [...]

• Things You Don’t Want to Read Before Boarding a Helicopter

  Posted: June 17, 2010, 11:00 am by Rob Crilly

  Things You Don’t Want to Read Before Boarding a Helicopter

• Rummaging in Book Shops

  Posted: June 15, 2010, 3:33 pm by Rob Crilly

  No-one told me about the bookshops of Islamabad. Not just Saeed Book Bank, in F7, but all the dingey little secondhand stores that lurk in the least promising corners of every one of the little shopping centres. They have pile upon pile of newspapers – everything from the local Urdu offerings to The Manchester Evening [...]

• Good Governance – No Chance

  Posted: June 13, 2010, 8:23 pm by Rob Crilly

  Was watching the US v England match last night here in Pakistan. One of my new friends said something along the lines of how he’d never stopped to think much about Africa before. But maybe after the World Cup, watching the glitz and fun, he said, he might make a visit. Great, I thought, that’s what [...]

• Discovering Libya

  Posted: June 2, 2010, 2:58 pm by Rob Crilly

  Press release arrives in my inbox that I thought I’d pass on: Chris Bradley, author, documentary maker and photographer, and Amelia Stewart, founder of leading specialist tour operator Simoon Travel, will share their tips for Discovering Libya at the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG), in London on Wednesday 9 June 2010.

• Ridicule is Nothing to be Scared of

  Posted: May 26, 2010, 5:47 pm by Rob Crilly

  I wrote most of this a week ago. As my post gathered pace, I didn’t notice that I gradually lost access YouTube, most of the BBC News website, the New Scientist, Wikipedia, twitter and hundreds of other sites. It was only when WordPress was blocked here in Pakistan that I realised what was happening. Anyway, [...]

• Going Local

  Posted: May 19, 2010, 9:47 am by Rob Crilly

  The plan was quite simple. We were making a trip to a village in rural Punjab. The sort of place where it was not inconceivable that we could be close to supporters of Jihadi groups. The driver, fixer and I agreed we would dress in traditional shalwar kameez to avoid drawing attention to ourselves (even [...]

• Putting the Error in Terrorism

  Posted: May 17, 2010, 11:35 am by Rob Crilly

  I’m waiting in eager anticipation for The Express Tribune to be launched in Islamabad. So far this newest of Pakistan’s papers is available in Karachi, and a day or so later here in the capital. It has a clean, fresh design and a lively turn in human interest stories. Best of all though is Sami [...]

• Islamabad

  Posted: May 16, 2010, 10:44 am by Rob Crilly

  So here I am in Islamabad. A new city, new country, new employer. A lot of changes. South of West has been quiet since I arrived. For a start I wanted to keep writing about Sudan and Africa for a bit. But then I realised I had become just another blogger writing about a place [...]

• Monitoring the Sudanese Elections

  Posted: April 24, 2010, 9:48 am by Rob Crilly

  The Carter Center: ” it is apparent that the elections will fall short of meeting international standards and Sudan’s obligations for genuine elections in many respects. Nonetheless, the elections are important as a key benchmark in the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) and because of the increased political and civic participation that has occurred over the [...]

• How to Write About China in Africa

  Posted: April 17, 2010, 11:39 am by Rob Crilly

  KHARTOUM OR SOMEWHERE SIMILAR OR IN FACT VERY DIFFERENT: First up is to pick your major, billion-dollar infrastructure project built by the Chinese. Ideally it will involve oil processing, pumping, prospecting or some such. Failing that, a dam, road or power station will do the trick – but at the very least make sure it [...]

• Beware Copy-Cat Piracy

  Posted: April 14, 2010, 6:45 pm by Rob Crilly

  The House of Lords has published its report into Somali piracy, examining specifically the success of EU Operation Atalanta, and is available here. I find myself elsewhere these days so haven’t ploughed through its pages. I’m sure there’s some tasty nuggets in there. In the meantime the conclusions do seem to take a rather optimistic [...]

• Sudan Election Stuff

  Posted: April 11, 2010, 11:55 am by Rob Crilly

  Quick round up of Sudan election relatedish things… Polling Day and A Complex Election – Hafiz Mohammed on how there’s simply not enough hours in the day to fill in the dastardly complex ballot papers When is an election boycott not an election boycott? When it takes place in Sudan Rigged Elections in Darfur and [...]

• Bashir and the ICC

  Posted: April 7, 2010, 1:12 pm by Rob Crilly

  My opinion piece is running in The Daily Telegraph today. It is a round-up of the thesis in my book but also points out, with an election days away for which Bashir is a shoo-in, how the international campaign has backfired. This is likely to be the most contentious claim… Then, last year, the campaign [...]

• My Pakistan Reading List

  Posted: April 5, 2010, 5:47 pm by Rob Crilly

  I move to Islamabad on Wednesday to become The Telegraph’s Pakistan correspondent. Here is my current reading list: In the Line of Fire by Pervez Musharraf – currently still sitting in a warehouse somewhere, and I fear this won’t arrive in time A Case of Exploding Mangoes by Mohammed Hanif – novels tend to have [...]

• What’s Going on in Sudan?

  Posted: April 1, 2010, 10:14 pm by Rob Crilly

  Confusing and depressing news from Sudan, where the main opposition parties have withdrawn their candidates for this month’s presidential election, following the SPLM’s decision to withdraw last night. There is no doubt the elections will not be free and fair. The International Crisis Group report earlier this week made clear that the rigging had already [...]

• Taking the G-Word out of Darfur

  Posted: March 31, 2010, 1:00 pm by Rob Crilly

  Interesting developments at Save Darfur. Robert B Lawrence, director of policy and government relations at the Save Darfur Coalition, has railed against commentators who accuse the lobby group of being stuck in the past and not helping the cause of millions of Darfuris stuck in miserable aid camps. He argues that the coalition has actually [...]

• Centrifugal Forces in Sudan

  Posted: March 30, 2010, 2:29 pm by Rob Crilly

  Debate about potential delay to Sudanese elections continues, with some opposition parties wanting the ballot postponed to ensure a fairer process. Hassan al-Turabi’s centrifugal forces, though, are a valid concern and less than perfect elections may be the best we can hope for. But should we settle for that? One of my colleagues in Nairobi [...]

• City Uni and Islam

  Posted: March 29, 2010, 1:36 am by Rob Crilly

  Blimey. City University is already at the centre of a row over the role of Islam on campuses, having entertained extremist clerics and been the scene of violence against Muslims. So you’d imagine that Rosie Waterhouse, head of the MA course in investigative journalism, knew what she was doing by writing a piece in the Indy urging [...]

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Fish cakes

Alas a fish cake.

Yet more fish cakes

Guess what ... yeah ... fish cakes.

The end of the fish cakes