19th October 2018 Beirut, Lebanon
As Fayruz says….. bhebak ya lebnan. “Ahla wa sahla saadet el safir” said my welcoming team at the airport – “shoukran, please call me Chris, and do speak to me in Arabic” I said back. That was only 5 weeks ago – it seems much further back. Lebanon has a reputation for outstanding hospitality, stunning […]
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16th June 2017 Beirut, Lebanon
After each terrorist attack, we repeat to ourselves the reassuring mantra that the terrorists won’t win, and they won’t. But on one level, the mantra can sound empty. Terrorists will, sadly, continue to kill and spread fear across many regions of the world. The recent attacks and harrowing experiences of Westminster, Manchester and London Bridge […]
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26th April 2016 Beirut, Lebanon
Yesterday I participated in an ANZAC ceremony for the first time: a moving dawn service led by Australian Ambassador Glenn Miles to commemorate the fallen of the Australia and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) in the battle of Gallipoli, 1915. This tragic battle helped forge the modern countries of Australia and New Zealand. There was […]
12th March 2015 Beirut, Lebanon
On the first anniversary of the Syria conflict, I wrote about the staggering impact it had already had – those numbers seem small now. On the second anniversary, I wrote about the generosity of Syria’s neighbours and parts of the international community, the frustrations of diplomacy, and the need to maintain a sense of rage. […]
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16th October 2014 Beirut, Lebanon
This year’s Blog Action Day (#BAD2014 #Blogaction14), on 16 October, is on inequality. To encourage debate about the rights of migrant workers, I spent the day with Kalkidan Nigusie, from Ethiopia. In the morning, we visited the Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk (who has written his response here), gave a press conference, and chaired a meeting […]
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17th July 2014
The following is a guest blog by Steve Townsend, Deputy Head of Mission at the British Embassy to the Holy See In July in Rome, thoughts start to turn to holidays, and escaping the humidity of the Eternal City for the beach or the mountains. Most people think that they have deserved their break, and […]
14th May 2014
We all face information-overload. How can the leaders of organisations cope with the mass of emails, phone calls, meetings, video-conferences and other demands on their time? And how can we manage our time while also making sure that we deliver results? The answer is through delegation: by pushing decision-making and implementation down to people who […]
4th April 2013
2013 sees the 50th anniversary of Pope John XXIII’s great encyclical Pacem in Terris (Peace on Earth), addressed “to all people of good will”. In the encyclical, Pope John called on states to reduce arms stockpiles – nuclear and conventional – and for “a general agreement … about progressive disarmament and an effective method of […]
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