Britain’s covert war in Yemen

Mark Curtis, Declassified UK, 5 October 2022 The UK’s current war in Yemen is not the first time Britain has contributed to devastating the country. Sixty years ago, a coup in North Yemen prompted UK officials to begin a secret war that also led to tens of thousands of deaths – and, as now, no […]

Like billionaire-controlled media, The Guardian misinforms its readers on the UK’s role in world

By Mark Curtis, Declassified UK, 26 April 2021 Millions of its readers believe the Guardian offers critical, independent reporting that is different to the right-wing, billionaire-controlled UK media. But its limited coverage of British foreign and security policies gives a misleading picture of what the UK does in the world. The paper is in reality […]

British government ministers have been complicit in millions of deaths since 1945, so don’t be surprised that they won’t face justice over coronavirus

By Mark Curtis Declassified UK, 2 May 2020 The UK government’s failure to provide protective equipment to all health staff treating coronavirus victims prompts questions whether ministers are legally culpable for failing to prevent deaths. But UK ministers routinely act with impunity and every prime minister since 1945 has been complicit in deaths abroad. At […]

How the UK press is misinforming the public about Britain’s role in the world

by Mark Curtis Declassified UK, 9 March 2020 Britain’s national press consistently portrays Britain as a supporter of noble objectives such as human rights and democracy. The extraordinary extent to which the public is being misinformed about the UK’s foreign and military policies is revealed in new statistical research by Declassified UK. The research suggests […]

Boris Johnson or Jeremy Hunt: On the Middle East, it makes no difference

by Mark Curtis Published in Middle East Eye, 25 June 2019 The contest to become the leader of Britain’s ruling Conservative Party, and the country’s next prime minister, has failed so far to involve media scrutiny of the candidates’ views on British foreign policy. With the focus on Brexit and media attention on the personal life of Boris […]

What the latest secret government file tells us about UK Middle East policy

by Mark Curtis Published in Middle East Eye, 31 May 2019 The British government is refusing to release a 1941 file on Palestine, as it might “undermine the security” of Britain and its citizens. Why would a 78-year-old document be seen as so sensitive in 2019? One plausible reason is that it could embarrass the British government in […]

How the West’s war in Libya has spurred terrorism in 14 countries

by Mark Curtis Published in Middle East Eye, 3 May 2019 Eight years on from Nato’s war in Libya in 2011, as the country enters a new phase in its conflict, I have taken stock of the number of countries to which terrorism has spread as a direct product of that war. The number is at […]

Five years on: How the UK sees opportunity and profit in Sisi’s repressive Egypt

by Mark Curtis Published in Middle East Eye, 10 August 2018   Five years ago on 14 August, the new Egyptian military regime under General Abdel Fattah el-Sisi crushed a protest at Rabaa al-Adawiya Square in Cairo, killing at least 817 people. Since then, increasing repression has enabled Sisi to consolidate his rule while maintaining the support […]

Egypt: Declassified

These UK files and articles on Egypt highlight the illegality of the 1956 invasion, secret collusion with Israel, lying in parliament, collusion with the Muslim Brotherhood, and attempts to ‘get rid’ of Nasser. Documents Egypt, 1956-7 (Mark Curtis files from the National Archives) ‘Egypt: Note by the Prime Minister’ (National Archives, 12 November 1957, at […]

The UK’s Conflict, Stability and Security Fund: Diverting Aid and Undermining Human Rights

Report for Global Justice Now (December 2017) The UK government’s Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) raises all kinds of questions about the future of UK aid, the nature of the UK’s relations with states abusing human rights and the government’s openness with the public. Established in 2015, the CSSF is a £1 billion annual […]