Afghanistan Exhibition: London Show of Pics by Legendary Photographer Steve McCurry


An exhibition of photographs of Afghanistan taken by renowned photojournalist Steve McCurry opens in London next month. Steve McCurry's portrait The Afghan Girl, first published on the cover of National Geographic's June 1985 issue, is one of the most recognisable photos of our time.


Children work in opium field in Badakhshan, 1992

Children work in opium field in Badakhshan, 1992©Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos



Afghanistan has been a recurring subject in McCurry's work for over 30 years. He first visited the country in 1978 as a young freelance photojournalist and documented the conflict between US-backed Mujahideen rebels and the Soviet-backed Afghan government; a conflict that was to develop into a bloody nine-year war that would take the lives of over a million Afghans.


The exhibition, consisting of 40 pictures and spanning 30 years, runs from 12 May to 7 June at Beetles+Huxley, Swallow Street, London W1B 4DE.



A young boy stands with his firearm, 1979

A young boy stands with his firearm, 1979©Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos



Camel caravan, 1980

Camel caravan, 1980©Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos



Father and son in Helmand Province, 1980

Father and son in Helmand Province, 1980©Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos



An Afghan refugee in Baluchistan, 1981

An Afghan refugee in Baluchistan, 1981©Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos



Mujahideen stand atop a mountain in the Hindu Kush, 1984

Mujahideen stand atop a mountain in the Hindu Kush, 1984©Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos



Young men train for war, 1984

Young men train for war, 1984©Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos



Man with cloudy beard, 1992

Man with cloudy beard, 1992©Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos



Blue Mosque, Mazar-e-Sharif, 1992

Blue Mosque, Mazar-e-Sharif, 1992©Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos



Father and daughter at home in Nuristan, 1992

Father and daughter at home in Nuristan, 1992©Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos



Road to Jalalabad, 1992

Road to Jalalabad, 1992©Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos



Rebuilding a kiln in Kandahar, 1992

Rebuilding a kiln in Kandahar, 1992©Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos



Kuchi nomads at prayer, 1992

Kuchi nomads at prayer, 1992©Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos



Salat at Blue Mosque in Mazar-e-Sharif, 1992

Salat at Blue Mosque in Mazar-e-Sharif, 1992©Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos



Horse and two towers at Band-e-Amir, 2002

Horse and two towers at Band-e-Amir, 2002©Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos



Woman in canary burqa, 2002

Woman in canary burqa, 2002©Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos



Shi'ite Muslims during Ashura, 2002

Shi'ite Muslims during Ashura, 2002©Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos



Farmer walks through fields, 2006

Farmer walks through fields, 2006©Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos



Man in Bamiyan mosque, 2006

Man in Bamiyan mosque, 2006©Steve McCurry / Magnum Photos






YOU MIGHT LIKE THISSponsored Content by Taboola



Egypt Makes Eyes at the IMF but is it Ready for Tough Love?


Egypt's army chief and defence minister General Abdel Fatah el-Sisi attended the televised press conference during which the alleged Aids cure was unveiled.

Abdel Fatah el-Sisi is favourite to be Egypt's next President after May's voteReuters



The trickle of reforms coming out of Cairo in recent weeks have been pitched to the broader international community, but there's a certain special someone that Egypt hopes is paying attention.


That just happens to be the International Monetary Fund, an elusive suitor that Egypt craves longingly.


Following years of political turmoil and social upheaval, Egypt's coffers are almost empty. Its foreign exchange reserves dwindled under its last President Mohamed Morsi, as much of the world turned its back on the Islamist president's experiment in governance.


While his ousting led to an inflow of aid money from a trio of gulf states, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, Egypt really wants the long term massive cash injection that only the Washington-based fund can offer.


Getting the IMF to strike a deal will take some heavy lifting from the Egyptian government on austerity. Past leaders have spoken of the need for serious economic reform and Morsi dabbled with austerity before he was removed by a combination of popular will and military muscle last summer.


The message coming from Cairo these days is that the government is prepared to take the tough measures to secure the country's economic future. Fully aware that its mandate will run out upon the election of a new president in May's election, the interim regime is using its position to push through subsidy cuts.


Electricity, gas and bread are on the menu. The three industries have been heavily subsidised for decades and Egypt's interim President has targeted them all. However, the proposals are far from the hard-hitting cuts that the IMF would like to see before committing to an aid package.


First, the electricity reforms promised to target the richest 20% of Egyptians. Planning minister Ashraf al-Arabi sounded a tough note when he spoke to the press at an IMF – World Bank meeting this month.


"This energy subsidy system is unsustainable; we cannot afford [for] this to continue," al-Arabi said.


He went on to say the price hikes would be introduced gradually over a period of three to five years, while 15% of the cost savings would be used for social programmes that benefit the poorest Egyptians.


Since the initial announcement, the policy has remained vague, with no specifics on dates or figures released. Although the IMF will be encouraged at the seeming willingness to reduce state spending on energy subsidies, it will not be enough to persuade the IMF that Egypt is serious about reform.


The same can be said for the announcement on gas price hikes. The move to double the price of gas on the national grid sounds more radical than it is.


Most Egyptian citizens are not connected to the grid – instead they buy butane gas cylinders on the street to use for cooking. The hike will not affect Egypt's electricity generation sector, the country's largest consumer of gas. Bakeries are also exempt, meaning that only a small number of properties connected to the grid will be affected.


Indeed the measure is only expected to save the government around 1 million Egyptian pounds ($140,000, £85,000, €100,000) per year from its 130 million Egyptian pounds spending on energy subsidies. That number will have to increase sharply if Egypt expects to win support from the Fund.


The subsidy that strikes most fear in to the heart of an Egyptian leader is undoubtedly that on bread. Memories of the bread riots in 1977, are still fresh in Cairo, when hundreds of thousands of Egyptians took to the streets and dozens were killed.


That explains the timidity with which leaders have attempted to reduce the subsidy.


Currently, citizens can pick up bread for less than 1 American cent per loaf with no limit on the number purchased. A new smart card scheme will allow each citizen to pick up 150 loaves each month at this rate.


Egypt's Minister of Supply, Khaled Hanafi said the measure would prevent subsidies from "being wasted and leaked".


While that may strictly be true, it is not going to be enough to woo the IMF. Indeed all the above measures are too small to make a serious dent on Egypt's bloated subsidy spending.


However, if they mark a springboard for the next president to push through tougher reforms, then they will have served a purpose. But that won't be clear until the next president is in the hot seat.



Verizon Traces Half of Cyber Espionage Attacks to East Asia


Cyber security

A report has found that almost half of cyber spy incidents come from East Asia.



Almost half of cyber spying attacks can be traced back to East Asia, with most of them aiming to infiltrate data at companies in the US.


Cyber espionage occurrences tripled in the last year to reach 511 and 306 of these cases resulted in data being breached, according to Verizon's 2014 Data Breach Investigations Report.


Verizon found that 49% of these attacks can be traced by to East Asia, mainly China and Korea, and slightly over a fifth of the attacks came from Eastern Europe.


The report also found that 85% of the attacks were state-affiliated and 11% were the result of organised crime.


Others who are said to be spying on companies include former employees and business competitors.


A recent report from Vormetric, which surveyed 500 IT people at mid-large size organisations in the UK, found that 40% feel that insiders are the biggest threat to security breaches.


The top industries that were targeted were transportation, manufacturing and professional and public services, said Verizon.


The report says that attacks are growing at a rapid rate: "Most surprising to us is the consistent, significant growth of incidents in the dataset. We knew it was pervasive, but it's a little disconcerting when it triples last year's already much-increased number."


It also warns that if you are the victim of cyber espionage, it may be difficult to spot: "There's no fraud algorithm to alert victims about illicit use of such data, leaving many cases of espionage undiscovered."


Cyber security has been a big talking point in recent weeks following the 'Heartbleed' bug, which affects encryption of data sent over the internet allowing a user's password and other sensitive data to be spied on.



French School's Non to Reveal Secrets of Kim Jong-un's Favourite Cheese


North Korean Kim Jong French cheese Emmental ENIL

North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un is said to be French cheese enthusiastReuters



A French cheese-making school has turned down a request from North Korea to have a team of food experts trained in the fine art of producing Kim Jong-un's favourite fromage, Emmental.


The National Dairy Industry College in the town of Mamirolle on the Swiss-French border said it had been visited by two emissaries from Pyongyang seeking enlightenment.


College director Veronique Drouet said she was also directly contacted by the Pyongyang ambassador to Paris, who asked if it was possible for the prestigious institute, which specialises in hard mountain cheeses, to train a North Korean team.


"I think they thought they had found a school that would suit them and they thought there would be no question the partnership would work," Drouet told AFP.


"[But] there is no basis to go further with North Korea because such a partnership does not fit into our priorities and strategy.


"We are a school that operates on a human scale, we can't take ourselves off to all four corners of the world," she added.


According to the French news website that first reported Pyongyang's cheese interests - La Lettre A - the experts' team was supposed to apply what they learned to improve cheese production back home.


Kim was said to be particularly concerned with the quality of North Korean Emmental, the classic Swiss cheese with holes, for which he acquired a taste during his years as a student in Switzerland.



Palestine: Hamas and Fatah Announce Reconciliation Agreement


Azzam Al-Ahmed (L), a senior Fatah official and head of the Hamas government Ismail Haniyeh (C) and deputy speaker of Palestinian Parliament Ahmed Bahar attend a meeting in Gaza City

Azzam Al-Ahmed (L), a senior Fatah official, and head of the Hamas government Ismail Haniyeh (C) and deputy speaker of Palestinian Parliament Ahmed Bahar attend a meeting in Gaza CityReuters



A deal between two rival political factions has been signed in the Gaza Strip at the home of Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas's Gaza-based prime minister.


Hamas and Fatah have been divided since factional fighting exploded after Hamas' victory in Gaza's Palestinian legislative council elections in 2006.


The Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) and Hamas have agreed to begin negotiations to form a Palestinian unity government in the coming weeks, according to reports.


Palestinian president Abbas will announce elections in the next six months.


The reconciliation deal is based primarily on the agreements signed by factions in Cairo and Doha.


MORE TO FOLLOW...



South Korea Ferry Capsize: Sewol Crew Members Arrested as Death Toll Reaches 150


South Korea Ferry Capsize

People attend at a candlelight vigil in Ansan, to commemorate the victims of capsized passenger ship Sewol and to wish for the safe return of missing passengers.Reuters



South Korean authorities have arrested four more crew members of the capsized Sewol ferry that has killed 150 people, with another 152 still missing.


The arrests bring the total number of crew detained to 11 as police raided the offices of companies linked to the ferry's owners.


A government official, Koh Myung-seok, told the Associated Press that rescue divers are now having to rip through cabin walls to retrieve victims.


"The lounge is one big open space, so once in it we got our search done straight away. But in the case of the cabins, we will have to break down the walls in between because they are all compartments," he said.


Most of the victims are students from the same high school in the city of Ansan near the capital of Seoul and Koh was adamant that authorities would not begin the salvage effort until they have exhausted all efforts to find survivors.


"Even if there is only one survivor, our government will do its best to rescue that person, and then we will salvage the ferry," he said.


Oh Sang-yoon, representing the South Korean government's emergency task force centre said in a statement that authorities are having to make extra room for bodies following the tragedy.


He said that the centre "is taking measures to accommodate additional bodies by placing mortuary refrigerators at the funeral halls in Ansan."


Twenty-two members of the ferry's crew out of the 29 on board are accused of being on the bridge of the ship when distress signals were released and the vessel began to sink.



US Military Aid to Egypt Resumes Starting With Apache Deal


U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Secretary of Defence Chuck Hagel will meet Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop and Defence Minister Senator David Johnston at the 2013 Australia-United States Ministerial Consultations (AUSMIN) to be hel

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will tell Congress that Egypt is upholding the Israel peace treaty



The White House has cleared the way for some military aid to resume flowing to Egypt after it certified that the Arabic country has been upholding its end of a peace treaty with Israel.


The decision allows Egypt to receive Apache helicopters, according to a congressional aide quoted by AFP who requested anonymity. The deal has been on hold since the country's former president Mohamed Morsi was ousted from office in July last summer.


"Today, Secretary of State John Kerry spoke with Egyptian Foreign Minister Nabid Fahmy to inform him that he is certifying to Congress that Egypt is sustaining the strategic relationship with the United States, including by countering transnational threats such as terrorism and weapons proliferation, and that Egypt is upholding its obligations under the Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty," said State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki in a statement.


The notification deals with Egypt's adherence to the Camp David accords, rather than its progression towards becoming a democratic state.


Psaki said Kerry "noted that he is not yet able to certify that Egypt is taking steps to support a democratic transition. He urged Egypt to follow through on its commitment to transition to democracy, including by conducting free, fair and transparent elections, and easing restrictions on freedom of expression, assembly and the media."


The Secretary of State will meet with Egypt's intelligence chief in Washington on Wednesday.


Egypt is set to hold presidential elections in May with Abdel Fattah al-Sisi the hot favourite to become Egypt's next leader. The former army chief announced his decision to run this month and faces no heavyweight competition in the vote



South Korea Ferry: Anguish in Students' Home Town as Death Toll Tops 150


As the death toll for the sunken South Korean ferry tops 150, a huge group memorial altar has opened near the school attended by dozens of children on board the doomed vessel.


A wall of white and yellow flowers has been erected in Ansan, the city which is home to Danwon High School. The wall surrounds photos of 47 students and teachers whose bodies have been recovered from the ferry and identified.


There is room for many, many more pictures.



People pay tribute to the ferry disaster victims at a group memorial altar at the Ansan Olympic Memorial HallGetty



Students from Danwon high school weep after paying tribute at a group memorial altar for victims of the South Korean ferry disasterGetty




An elderly woman reacts as she visits the group memorial altar for the victims of the sunken South Korean ferry at the Ansan Olympic memorial hallAFP




People hold candles at a vigil in Ansan, South KoreaAFP




Meanwhile, the grim work of recovering bodies from the submerged South Korea ferry is continuing.


The number of corpses recovered has risen sharply since the weekend, when divers battling strong currents and low visibility were finally able to enter the submerged vessel. But task force spokesman Koh Myung-seok the work is becoming more difficult, and divers must now break through cabin walls to retrieve more bodies.


"The lounge is one big open space, so once in it we got our search done straight away. But in the case of the cabins, we will have to break down the walls in between because they are all compartments," Koh said.



Rescue workers carry a body recovered from the ferry to an ambulance at the harbour in Jindo

Rescue workers carry a body recovered from the ferry to an ambulance at the harbour in JindoAFP



South Korean rescue teams take part in recovery operations at the site of the sunken Sewol ferry, marked with buoys

South Korean rescue teams take part in recovery operations at the site of the sunken Sewol ferry, marked with buoysAFP



Family members wait for news on the rescue and salvage operation at a gymnasium in the port city of Jindo

Family members wait for news on the rescue and salvage operation at a gymnasium in the port city of JindoReuters



A military medic comforts a woman after she identified her family member on a list of newly found bodies

A military medic comforts a woman after she identified her family member on a list of newly found bodiesReuters



Relatives of missing passengers stare out to sea at Jindo harbour

Relatives of missing passengers stare out to sea at Jindo harbourAFP




Twenty-two of the 29 members of the ferry's crew survived, and 11 have been arrested or detained in connection with the investigation. The captain, Lee Joon-seok, and two crew members were arrested on suspicion of negligence and abandoning people in need.


The captain has said he waited to issue an evacuation order because the current was strong, the water was cold and passengers could have drifted away before help arrived. But experts said he could have ordered passengers to the deck — where they would have had a greater chance of survival — without telling them to abandon ship.


The cause of the disaster is not yet known. Senior prosecutor Ahn Sang-don said investigators are considering factors including wind, ocean currents, freight, modifications made to the ship and the fact that it turned just before it began listing.



A woman holding a portrait cries after paying tribute at the group memorial altar in Ansan

A woman holding a portrait cries after paying tribute at the group memorial altar in AnsanReuters



A relative of a missing passenger prays at Jindo harbour

A relative of a missing passenger prays at Jindo harbourAFP



A Buddhist monk faces the sea and prays for the missing passengers

A Buddhist monk faces the sea and prays for the missing passengersReuters






YOU MIGHT LIKE THISSponsored Content by Taboola



Yuan Declines to 16-Month Low as China Manufacturing Keeps Shrinking


China manufacturing

An industrial area, with a power plant, south of Yangzhou's downtown, China



China's manufacturing sector has continued to contract for the fourth straight month in April, pulling the yuan down to lowest level in 16 months.


The flash China manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) jointly compiled by HSBC and Markit economics showed a reading of 48.3 in April, compared to 48.0 in March.


An index reading below 50 indicates contraction in the manufacturing sector.


"Domestic demand showed mild improvement and deflationary pressures eased, but downside risks to growth are still evident as both new export orders and employment contracted," Hongbin Qu, China chief economist at HSBC, said in a statement.


"The State Council released new measures to support growth and employment after the release of Q1 GDP. Whilst initial impact will likely be limited, they signalled readiness to do more if necessary. We think more measures may be unveiled in the coming months and the PBoC will keep sufficient liquidity."


Contractions in new orders and output moderated in April, but employment decreased at a faster rate and new export orders fell below the 50 line after a pick-up in March.


The continued weakness in the manufacturing sector is raising concerns that the country's growth slowdown would expand into the second quarter. For the first quarter, China recorded GDP growth rate of 7.4%, the lowest in 18 months.


The weak data from the manufacturing sector negatively affected the yuan, which fell to the weakest level since 14 December 2012. The currency closed at 6.2376 per dollar in Shanghai, after falling as much as 0.15% to 6.2466 earlier.


Since the beginning of 2014, the currency declined 2.9% to be the worst performing currency in Asia.



Egypt Tastes Austerity With Gas Price Hike in May


A supermarket seller stands near an emergency light during power outage at his shop in Cairo

A supermarket seller stands near an emergency light during power outage at his shop in Cairo(Reuters)



Egypt will double the price it charges homes and businesses for natural gas next month, as the interim government looks to slash its huge subsidy bill.


Energy prices in the Arab world's most populous nation are among the lowest on the planet and the cost of subsidies eats up around 20% of the government's annual spending budget.


A government decree issued this week said a new price of 0.40 Egyptian pounds ($0.06, £0.035, €0.04) per cubic metre would be charged for residential and commercial users of less than 25 cubic metres of gas per month.


According to the Oil Ministry's website, the current price for residents is set at half that rate, while Egyptian state newspaper Al Ahram reported the current price at 0.10 Egyptian pounds per cubic metre.


Successive administrations have pledged to reduce energy subsidies but nobody has actually gone ahead with the reforms that could open access to more international lending.


Former President Mohamed Morsi wrangled with the International Monetary Fund in an attempt to secure a massive loan in return for passing austerity measures but he was deposed before a deal could be reached.


However, the announcement does not represent a radical overhaul of Egypt's gas subsidies as it will only affect premises connected to the national gas network, while there are some notable exceptions to the new price.


The hike will not affect Egypt's electricity generation sector, the country's largest consumer of gas. Bakeries are also exempt, meaning that only a small number of properties connected to the grid will be affected.


The majority of Egyptians use butane gas canisters in their homes, which they buy on the street at a heavily subsidised rate. Plans to increase the price of these canisters were shelved last year, in the face of criticism that they targeted the poorest Egyptians.



Johannesburg Stock Exchange: Trade Delayed by Another IT Glitch


London Stock Exchange

The Johannesburg Stock Exchange was hit by another technical issue which delayed the opening.Reuters



The opening of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange was delayed this morning after a technical glitch halted proceedings.


Trade did not start until 8am GMT, instead of the usual 7am GMT, after the JSE said that it had encountered a "technical issue" without expanding on the details.


However, this had no impact on trading as investors brushed away the issue with benchmark Top-40 index hitting new heights soon after opening.


This is just the latest glitch in a series of errors that have hampered trading on the $900bn (€1.1tn, $1.5tn) stock exchange.


Network problems brought the JSE down in 2010 for more than six hours and a similar problem occurred in 2011 when it ceased to work for over 30 minutes.


In 2012, the Johannesburg bourse relocated its main trading system from the UK to South Africa's largest city as it attempted to make trading faster and to cut down on trading errors that have plagued the system in recent years.


The JSE said that its move to the Millennium Exchange platform, which was designed by an element of the London Stock Exchange Group, in South Africa would help to eradicate technical problems on the system as it said that it was damaging its reputation.


The technical problems have been a persisting nuisance for the JSE as it hopes to attract more foreign investors in a bid to promote itself as an opening to Africa's emerging capital markets.



Tony Blair's 'Why the Middle East Matters' Speech - Full Transcript


Tony Blair gives a speech at Peking University in Beijing, China.

Tony Blair gives a speech at Peking University in Beijing, China.Reuters



It is unsurprising that public opinion in the UK and elsewhere, resents the notion that we should engage with the politics of the Middle East and beyond. We have been through painful engagements in Afghanistan and Iraq. After 2008, we have had our own domestic anxieties following the financial crisis. And besides if we want to engage, people reasonably ask: where, how and to what purpose?


More recently, Ukraine has served to push the Middle East to the inside pages, with the carnage of Syria featuring somewhat, but the chaos of Libya, whose Government we intervened to change, hardly meriting a mention.


However the Middle East matters. What is presently happening there, still represents the biggest threat to global security of the early 21st C. The region, including the wider area outside its conventional boundary – Pakistan, Afghanistan to the east and North Africa to the west – is in turmoil with no end in sight to the upheaval and any number of potential outcomes from the mildly optimistic to catastrophe.


At the root of the crisis lies a radicalised and politicised view of Islam, an ideology that distorts and warps Islam's true message. The threat of this radical Islam is not abating. It is growing. It is spreading across the world. It is de-stabilising communities and even nations. It is undermining the possibility of peaceful co-existence in an era of globalisation. And in the face of this threat we seem curiously reluctant to acknowledge it and powerless to counter it effectively.


In this speech I will set out how we should do this, including the recognition that on this issue, whatever our other differences, we should be prepared to reach out and cooperate with the East, and in particular, Russia and China.


The statement that the Middle East 'matters', is no longer uncontested. Some say after the shale revolution, the region has declined in significance for energy supplies, at least for the USA. Others say that though they accept that it continues to be a relevant and important region, there are other more pressing problems, most particularly now with Eastern Europe facing a resurgent, nationalist Russia. For the most part, a very common sentiment is that the region may be important but it is ungovernable and therefore impossible and therefore we should let it look after itself.


I would say there are four reasons why the Middle East remains of central importance and cannot be relegated to the second order.


First and most obviously, it is still where a large part of the world's energy supplies are generated, and whatever the long term implications of the USA energy revolution, the world's dependence on the Middle East is not going to disappear any time soon. In any event, it has a determining effect on the price of oil; and thus on the stability and working of the global economy.


Secondly, it is right on the doorstep of Europe. The boundary of the EU is a short distance from the Levantine coast. Instability here affects Europe, as does instability in North Africa, in close proximity to Spain and Italy.


Third, in the centre of this maelstrom, is Israel. Its alliance with the USA, its partnership with leading countries of Europe, and the fact that it is a Western democracy, mean that its fate is never going to be a matter of indifference. Over these past years, with considerable skill, the Israelis have also built up relationships with China and with Russia. These aren't the same as their long standing Western alliances but they have significance. Were the Israelis to be pulled into a regional conflict, there is no realistic way that the world could or would want to shrug it off. For the moment, Israel has successfully stayed aloof from the storm around it. But the one thing the last few years has taught us (and them) is that we can expect the unexpected.


Finally and least obvious, is a reason we are curiously reluctant to admit, in part because the admission would throw up some very difficult policy choices. It is in the Middle East that the future of Islam will be decided. By this I mean the future of its relationship with politics. This is controversial because the world of politics is uncomfortable talking about religion; because some will say that really the problems are not religious but political; and even because – it is true – that the largest Muslim populations are to be found outside the region not inside it.


But I assert it nonetheless. I do so because underneath the turmoil and revolution of the past years is one very clear and unambiguous struggle: between those with a modern view of the Middle East, one of pluralistic societies and open economies, where the attitudes and patterns of globalisation are embraced; and, on the other side, those who want to impose an ideology born out of a belief that there is one proper religion and one proper view of it, and that this view should, exclusively, determine the nature of society and the political economy. We might call this latter perspective an 'Islamist' view, though one of the frustrating things about this debate is the inadequacy of the terminology and the tendency for any short hand to be capable of misinterpretation, so that you can appear to elide those who support the Islamist ideology with all Muslims.


But wherever you look – from Iraq to Libya to Egypt to Yemen to Lebanon to Syria and then further afield to Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan – this is the essential battle. Of course there are an array of complexities in each case, derived from tribe, tradition and territory. I would not for a moment suggest that these conflicts do not have their own individual characteristics. And the lack of economic opportunity is without doubt a prime proximate cause of the region's chaos. But there is something frankly odd about the reluctance to accept what is so utterly plain: that they have in common a struggle around the issue of the rightful place of religion, and in particular Islam, in politics.


It is crucially important in this description not to confuse the issue of religion and politics, with the question of religiosity. Many of those totally opposed to the Islamist ideology are absolutely devout Muslims. In fact it is often the most devout who take most exception to what they regard as the distortion of their faith by those who claim to be ardent Muslims whilst acting in a manner wholly in contradiction to the proper teaching of the Koran.


Neither should this be seen in simplistic Sunni/Shia terms. Sometimes the struggle is seen in those terms and sometimes it is right to see it so. But the real battle is against both Sunni and Shia extremism where the majority of people, Sunni or Shia, who are probably perfectly content to live and let live, in the same way that nowadays most Catholics and Protestants do, are caught in a vicious and often literal crossfire between competing exclusivist views of the 'true' Islam. Where the two views align, whatever their mutual antagonism, is in the belief that those who think differently are the 'enemy' either within or without.


The reason this matters so much is that this ideology is exported around the world. The Middle East is still the epicentre of thought and theology in Islam. Those people, fortunately not a majority, in countries like, for example, Indonesia or Malaysia who espouse a strict Islamist perspective, didn't originate these ideas. They imported them.


For the last 40/50 years, there has been a steady stream of funding, proselytising, organising and promulgating coming out of the Middle East, pushing views of religion that are narrow minded and dangerous. Unfortunately we seem blind to the enormous global impact such teaching has had and is having.


Within the Middle East itself, the result has been horrible, with people often facing a choice between authoritarian Government that is at least religiously tolerant; and the risk that in throwing off the Government they don't like, they end up with a religiously intolerant quasi-theocracy.


Take a step back and analyse the world today: with the possible exception of Latin America (leaving aside Hezbollah in the tri-border area in South America), there is not a region of the world not adversely affected by Islamism and the ideology is growing. The problems of the Mid East and North Africa are obvious. But look at the terror being inflicted in countries – Nigeria, Mali, Central African Republic, Chad and many others – across Sub Saharan Africa. Indeed I would argue that that religious extremism is possibly the single biggest threat to their ability to overcome the massive challenges of development today.


In Central Asia, terrorist attacks are regular occurrences in Russia, whose Muslim population is now over 15%, and radical influences are stretching across the whole of the central part of Northern Asia, reaching even the Western province of Xinjiang in China.


In the Far East, there has been the important breakthrough in resolving the Mindanao dispute in the Philippines, where well over 100,000 people lost their lives in the last decade or so. But elsewhere, in Thailand, Myanmar, Bangladesh and Indonesia, there remain real inter-religious challenges and tensions. In the recent Indonesian elections, the Islamic parties received a third of the vote.


The Muslim population in Europe is now over 40m and growing. The Muslim Brotherhood and other organisations are increasingly active and they operate without much investigation or constraint. Recent controversy over schools in Birmingham (and similar allegations in France) show heightened levels of concern about Islamist penetration of our own societies.


All of this you can read about.


However for the purposes of this speech, two fascinating things stand out for me. The first is the absolutely rooted desire on the part of Western commentators to analyse these issues as disparate rather than united by common elements. They go to extraordinary lengths to say why, in every individual case, there are multiple reasons for understanding that this is not really about Islam, it is not really about religion; there are local or historic reasons which explain what is happening. There is a wish to eliminate the obvious common factor in a way that is almost wilful. Now of course as I have said, there is always a context that is unique to each situation. There will naturally be a host of local factors that play a part in creating the issue. But it is bizarre to ignore the fact the principal actors in all situations, express themselves through the medium of religious identity or that in ideological terms, there is a powerful unifying factor based on a particular world view of religion and its place in politics and society.


The second thing is that there is a deep desire to separate the political ideology represented by groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood from the actions of extremists including acts of terrorism. This stems from a completely laudable sense that we must always distinguish between those who violate the law and those we simply disagree with.


But laudable though the motives are, which lead us to this distinction, if we're not careful, they also blind us to the fact that the ideology itself is nonetheless dangerous and corrosive; and cannot and should not be treated as a conventional political debate between two opposing views of how society should be governed.


It may well be the case that in particular situations, those who follow a strictly Islamist political agenda neither advocate nor approve of political violence. There are of course a variety of different views within such a broadly described position. But their overall ideology is one which inevitably creates the soil in which such extremism can take root. In many cases, it is clear that they regard themselves as part of a spectrum, with a difference of view as to how to achieve the goals of Islamism, not a difference as to what those goals are; and in certain cases, they will support the use of violence.


At this point it must again be emphasised: it is not Islam itself that gives rise to this ideology. It is an interpretation of Islam, actually a perversion of it which many Muslims abhor. There used to be such interpretations of Christianity which took us years to eradicate from our mainstream politics.


The reason that this ideology is dangerous is that its implementation is incompatible with the modern world – politically, socially, and economically. Why? Because the way the modern world works is through connectivity. Its essential nature is pluralist. It favours the open-minded. Modern economies work through creativity and connections. Democracy cannot function except as a way of thinking as well as voting. You put your view; you may lose; you try to win next time; or you win but you accept that you may lose next time.


That is not the way that the Islamist ideology works. It is not about a competing view of how society or politics should be governed within a common space where you accept other views are equally valid. It is exclusivist in nature. The ultimate goal is not a society which someone else can change after winning an election. It is a society of a fixed polity, governed by religious doctrines that are not changeable but which are, of their essence, unchangeable.


Because the West is so completely unfamiliar with such an ideology –though actually the experience of revolutionary communism or fascism should resonate with older generations – we can't really see the danger properly. We feel almost that if we identify it in these terms, we're being anti-Muslim, a sentiment on which the Islamists cleverly play.


Right now in the Middle East, this is the battle being waged. Of course in each country, it arises in a different form. But in each case, take out the extremist views around religion, and each conflict or challenge becomes infinitely more manageable. This is where, even though at one level the ideology coming out of Shia Iran and that of the Sunni Muslim Brotherhood may seem to be different, in reality they amount to the same thing with the same effect – the holding back of the proper political, social and economic advance of the country.


It is this factor that then can explain many of the things that presently we seem to find inexplicable in a way that fuels our desire to dis-engage from the region and beyond it.


So we look at the issue of intervention or not and seem baffled. We change the regimes in Afghanistan and in Iraq, put soldiers on the ground in order to help build the country, a process which a majority of people in both countries immediately participated in, through the elections. But that proved immensely difficult and bloody.


We change the regime in Libya through air power, we don't commit forces on the ground, again the people initially respond well, but now Libya is a mess and a mess that is de-stabilising everywhere around it, (apart from Algeria partly because Algeria already went through a conflict precisely around the issue of Islamism in which thousands lost their lives.)


In Syria, we call for the regime to change, we encourage the Opposition to rise up, but then when Iran activates Hezbollah on the side of Assad, we refrain even from air intervention to give the Opposition a chance. The result is a country in disintegration, millions displaced, a death toll approximating that of Iraq, with no end in sight and huge risks to regional stability.


The impact of this recent history, on Western opinion is a wish at all costs to stay clear of it all.


Then there has been the so-called Arab Spring. At first we jumped in to offer our support to those on the street. We are now bemused and bewildered that it hasn't turned out quite how we expected.


Even in respect of the MEPP there is an audible feeling of dismay, - that as the world around Israel and Palestine went into revolutionary spasm, and the need for progress seemed so plain, the issue in which we have expended extraordinary energy and determination through US Secretary Kerry, still seems as intractable as ever.


Yet the explanation for all of these apparently unresolvable contradictions is staring us in the face.


It is that there is a Titanic struggle going on within the region between those who want the region to embrace the modern world – politically, socially and economically – and those who instead want to create a politics of religious difference and exclusivity. This is the battle. This is the distorting feature. This is what makes intervention so fraught but non- intervention equally so. This is what complicates the process of political evolution. This is what makes it so hard for democracy to take root. This is what, irrespective of the problems on the Israeli side, divides Palestinian politics and constrains their leadership.


The important point for Western opinion is that this is a struggle with two sides. So when we look at the Middle East and beyond it to Pakistan or Iran and elsewhere, it isn't just a vast unfathomable mess with no end in sight and no one worthy of our support. It is in fact a struggle in which our own strategic interests are intimately involved; where there are indeed people we should support and who, ironically, are probably in the majority if only that majority were mobilised, organised and helped.


But what is absolutely necessary is that we first liberate ourselves from our own attitude. We have to take sides. We have to stop treating each country on the basis of whatever seems to make for the easiest life for us at any one time. We have to have an approach to the region that is coherent and sees it as a whole. And above all, we have to commit. We have to engage.


Engagement and commitment are words easy to use. But they only count when they come at a cost. Alliances are forged at moments of common challenge. Partnerships are built through trials shared. There is no engagement that doesn't involve a price. There is no commitment that doesn't mean taking a risk.


In saying this, it does not mean that we have to repeat the enormous commitment of Iraq and Afghanistan. It may well be that in time people come to view the impact of those engagements differently. But there is no need, let alone appetite, to do that.


I completely understand why our people feel they have done enough, more than enough. And when they read of those we have tried to help spurning our help, criticising us, even trying to kill us, they're entitled to feel aggrieved and to say: we're out.


However, as the Afghans who braved everything to vote show us and the Iraqis who will also come out and vote despite all the threats and the inadequacy of the system they now live in, demonstrate, those who spurn our help are only part of the story. There are others whose spirit and determination stay undaunted. And I think of the Egyptians who have been through so much and yet remain with optimism; and the Palestinians who work with me and who, whatever the frustrations, still want and believe in a peaceful solution; and I look at Tunisians and Libyans and Yemenis who are trying to make it all work properly; and I realise this is not a struggle without hope. This is not a mess where everyone is as bad as each other. In other words it matters and there is a side we should be proud to take. There are people to stand beside and who will stand beside us.


But we have to be clear what that side is and why we're taking it. So what does that mean?


It means supporting the principles of religious freedom and open, rule based economies. It means helping those countries whose people wish to embrace those principles to achieve them. Where there has been revolution, we should be on the side of those who support those principles and opposed to those who would thwart them. Where there has not been revolution, we should support the steady evolution towards them.


If we apply those principles to the Middle East, it would mean the following.


Egypt. I start with Egypt not because what is happening in Syria is not more horrifying; but because on the fate of Egypt hangs the future of the region. Here we have to understand plainly what happened. The Muslim Brotherhood Government was not simply a bad Government. It was systematically taking over the traditions and institutions of the country. The revolt of 30 June 2013 was not an ordinary protest. It was the absolutely necessary rescue of a nation. We should support the new Government and help. None of this means that where there are things we disagree strongly with – such as the death sentence on the 500 – that we do not speak out. Plenty of Egyptians have. But it does mean that we show some sensitivity to the fact that over 400 police officers have suffered violent deaths and several hundred soldiers been killed. The next President will face extraordinary challenges. It is massively in our interests that he succeeds. We should mobilise the international community in giving Egypt and its new President as much assistance as we can so that the country gets a chance not to return to the past but to cross over to a better future.


Syria. This is an unmitigated disaster. We are now in a position where both Assad staying and the Opposition taking over seem bad options. The former is responsible for creating this situation. But the truth is that there are so many fissures and problems around elements within the Opposition that people are rightly wary now of any solution that is an outright victory for either side. Repugnant though it may seem, the only way forward is to conclude the best agreement possible even if it means in the interim President Assad stays for a period. Should even this not be acceptable to him, we should consider active measures to help the Opposition and force him to the negotiating table, including no fly zones whilst making it clear that the extremist groups should receive no support from any of the surrounding nations.


Tunisia. Here there have been genuine and positive attempts by the new Government to escape from the dilemmas of the region and to shape a new Constitution. Supporting the new Government should be an absolute priority. As the new President has rightly said for a fraction of what we're offering Ukraine – which of course is the correct thing to do - we could put Tunisia on its feet. We should do so. This would be a very sensible investment.


Libya. We bear a responsibility for what has happened. Their urgent need is for security sector reform. We have made some attempts to do so. But obviously the scale of the task and the complications of the militia make it very hard. But Libya is not Iraq or Afghanistan. It is not impossible to help and NATO has the capability to do so. However reluctant we are to make this commitment, we have to recognise the de-stabilising impact Libya is having at present. If it disintegrates completely, it will affect the whole of the region around it and feed the instability in Sub- Saharan Africa.


Yemen. Again the country is trying to make progress in circumstances that are unimaginably difficult. We are giving support to the new Government. There is a new Constitution. But again they urgently need help with security sector reform and with development.


Iran. We should continue to make it clear, as the Obama administration is rightly doing, that they have to step back from being a nuclear threshold state. The next weeks will be a crucial phase in the negotiation. But I do not favour yielding to their demands for regional influence in return for concessions on their nuclear ambitions. The Iranian Government play a deliberately de-stabilising role across the region. Our goals should not include regime change. Their people will, in the end, have to find their own way to do that. However we should at every opportunity, push back against the use of their power to support extremism.


MEPP. Since becoming Secretary of State, John Kerry has put immense effort into making the peace process work. As we speak, his efforts hang in the balance. Many people said he should not have given such priority to this issue. They are wrong. It remains absolutely core to the region and the world. Not because the Israeli / Palestinian conflict is the cause of our problems. But because solving it would be such a victory for the very forces we should support. Now it may be that after years of it being said that solving this question is the route to solving the regions' problems, we're about to enter a new phase where solving the region's problems a critical part of solving the Israeli / Palestinian issue. But the point is that John Kerry's commitment has not been in vain. He has put himself in an immensely powerful position to drive this forward by virtue of that commitment. He needs our support in doing so.


Elsewhere across the region we should be standing steadfast by our friends and allies as they try to change their own countries in the direction of reform. Whether in Jordan or the Gulf where they're promoting the values of religious tolerance and open, rule based economies, or taking on the forces of reaction in the shape of Iran and the Muslim Brotherhood, we should be supporting and assisting them.


Finally, we have to elevate the issue of religious extremism to the top of the agenda. All over the world the challenge of defeating this ideology requires active and sustained engagement. Consider this absurdity: that we spend billions of $ on security arrangements and on defence to protect ourselves against the consequences of an ideology that is being advocated in the formal and informal school systems and in civic institutions of the very countries with whom we have intimate security and defence relationships. Some of those countries of course wish to escape from the grip of this ideology. But often it is hard for them to do so within their own political constraints. They need to have this issue out in the open where it then becomes harder for the promotion of this ideology to happen underneath the radar. In other words they need us to make this a core part of the international dialogue in order to force the necessary change within their own societies. This struggle between what we may call the open-minded and the closed-minded is at the heart of whether the 21st C turns in the direction of peaceful co-existence or conflict between people of different cultures.


If we do not act, then we will start to see reactions against radical Islam which will then foster extremism within other faiths. Indeed we see some evidence of this already directed against Muslims in Asia particularly.


When we consider the defining challenges of our time, surely this one should be up there along with the challenge of the environment or economic instability. Add up the deaths around the world now – and even leave out the theatre of the Middle East – and the toll on human life is deplorable. In Nigeria recently and Pakistan alone thousands are now dying in religiously inspired conflict. And quite apart from the actual loss of life, there is the loss of life opportunities for parts of the population mired in backward thinking and reactionary attitudes especially towards girls.


On this issue also, there is a complete identity of interest between East and West. China and Russia have exactly the same desire to defeat this ideology as do the USA and Europe. Here is a subject upon which all the principal nations of the G20 could come together, could agree to act, and could find common ground to common benefit. An international programme to eradicate religious intolerance and prejudice from school systems and informal education systems and from organisations in civic society would have a huge galvanising effect in making unacceptable what is currently ignored or tolerated.


So there is an agenda here in part about the Middle East and its importance; and in part about seeing what is happening there in the context of its impact on the wider world.


This is why I work on the Middle East Peace Process; why I began my Foundation to promote inter-faith dialogue. Why I will do all I can to help governments confronting these issues.


Consider for a moment since 9/11 how our world has changed, how in a myriad of different ways from the security measures we now take for granted to the arenas of conflict that have now continued over a span of years, there is a price being paid in money, life and opportunity for millions. This is not a conventional war. It isn't a struggle between super powers or over territory. But it is real. It is fearsome in its impact. It is growing in its reach. It is a battle about belief and about modernity. It is important because the world through technology and globalisation is pushing us together across boundaries of faith and culture. Unaddressed, the likelihood of conflict increases. Engagement does not always mean military involvement. Commitment does not mean going it alone. But it does mean stirring ourselves. It does mean seeing the struggle for what it is. It does mean taking a side and sticking with it.



Prince Harry Thongs in Production after Chinese Firm Buys Name


harry speak

Prince Harry speaks at the We Day UK event at Wembley ArenaGetty



Prince Harry Thongs are set to go on sale after a Chinese firm bought the rights to use the royal's name.


Chinese fashion firm Yiwu Novo Clothing Company Limited has registered the right to use Prince Harry's name for lace products, jewellery and watches until 2023.


The same company is already using the name 'Prince Harry' for its clothing ranges.


Princes William and Harry, and William's wife Kate Middleton, have set up dedicated companies to manage their image in the UK and Europe. Harry's company, Tsessebe, is named after a type of African antelope.


However, despite the exotic name, Harry's company cannot prevent his name and image being used outside Europe, as UK and EU trademarks do not apply elsewhere in the world.


A spokeswoman for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has said that Harry, along with his brother and sister-in-law, will have difficulty stopping his name being used in China unless he himself registers there.


The spokeswoman added that the Prince Harry merchandise could also be imported to the UK, provided the names are considered as decorative — which is permissible — rather than branding, which would be protected under the princes' image rights.


William's name has already been registered for use by several companies in China, and is now emblazoned on a range of kitchen products including microwave ovens.


Even the name 'Prince George' is being used in China by a company producing wood pulp and chemicals.


The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have not yet taken any steps to protect their son's name in the UK or Europe.



Rio de Janeiro: Violence Erupts Ahead of World Cup and Olympics After TV Dancer Found Dead


Violence erupted in a Rio de Janeiro slum following the killing of a popular local figure. Angry residents set fires and showered home-made explosives and glass bottles onto a busy avenue in the city's main tourist zone.


Intense exchanges of gunfire were heard when members of an elite police moved into the Pavao-Pavaozinho slum, which lies a few hundred metres from where Olympic swimming events are expected to take place in 2016.


point gun

A police officer takes aim during a violent protest in a favela near CopacabanaAFP



The rioting occurred after the body of 25-year-old Douglas Rafael da Silva Pereira was found. He was a well-known figure in the community, as he was a dancer on a TV show for Brazil's Globo network, the nation's largest channel. The circumstances of his death aren't clear, but residents blame police.


"The police beat my friend to death, just like they've tortured and killed in other communities," said Johanas Mesquita, a 23-year-old resident of Pavao-Pavaozinho. "This effort to pacify the favelas is a failure, the police violence is only replacing what the drug gangs carried out before."



A resident gestures during a protest in Pavao-Pavaozinho slum, in the Copacabana neighbourhood of Rio de Janeiro. Residents accused police peacekeeping officers of causing the death of a dancer, Douglas Rafael da Silva Pereira, 25, who was found dead at a school

A resident gestures during a protest in Pavao-Pavaozinho slum, in the Copacabana neighbourhood of Rio de Janeiro. Residents accused police peacekeeping officers of causing the death of a dancer, Douglas Rafael da Silva Pereira, 25, who was found dead at a schoolReuters



Police take position during a violent protest in a favela near Copacabana

Police take position during a violent protest in a favela near CopacabanaAFP



A policeman holds a rifle as a woman walks down the stairs

A policeman holds a rifle as a woman walks down the stairsAFP



A Brazilian Police Special Forces member aims his gun as a man walks past with his arms up

A Brazilian Police Special Forces member aims his gun as a man walks past with his arms upAFP




Following the discovery of the body, angry young men began lighting fires throughout the slum and tossing homemade explosives, bottles and other objects down onto Copacabana's main avenues.


Elite police units entered the slum, and at least three prolonged exchanges of gunfire were heard, presumably between officers and the drug gang members who continue to maintain a presence in the shantytown.



Brazilian Police Special Forces members run for cover during a violent protest

Brazilian Police Special Forces members run for cover during a violent protestAFP



Brazilian police patrol the Pavao-Pavaozinho slum, just a few blocks away from Copacabana Beach

Brazilian police patrol the Pavao-Pavaozinho slum, just a few blocks away from Copacabana BeachGetty



Policemen take up position next to barricades set on fire by residents of the Pavao-Pavaozinho slum

Policemen take up position next to barricades set on fire by residents of the Pavao-Pavaozinho slumReuters




Police began an ambitious security programme in 2008 to drive gangs from the slums and to set up permanent posts. It is part of Rio's overall security push ahead of the World Cup that begins this June and the Olympics the city will host in 2016.


So far, 37 such "police pacification units" have been created covering an area with a population of 1.5 million people.


But there have been repeated complaints of heavy-handed police tactics that have ended in the deaths of residents, and that is what set-off the latest clashes. More than two dozen police face charges from a high-profile case in a different shantytown, when investigators said a local man died while being tortured by police.



Police officers carry a wounded man during a protest by residents against the death of a man in Pavao-Pavaozinho slum

Police officers carry a wounded man during a protest by residents against the death of a man in Pavao-Pavaozinho slumReuters



A man is detained by police

A man is detained by policeReuters






YOU MIGHT LIKE THISSponsored Content by Taboola