Difference between revisions of "Alastair Crooke"
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Former [[Secret Intelligence Service|MI6]] agent and founder of [[Conflicts Forum]]. | Former [[Secret Intelligence Service|MI6]] agent and founder of [[Conflicts Forum]]. | ||
| − | ::Born in Ireland in 1949, Crooke was brought up in Africa, mainly on a farm near Harare in what was then Rhodesia, where his father farmed tobacco. He was educated in Switzerland and at St Andrews University. <ref>[http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article402174.ece Let’s talk: ex-MI6 man plans terror summit] | + | ::Born in Ireland in 1949, Crooke was brought up in Africa, mainly on a farm near Harare in what was then Rhodesia, where his father farmed tobacco. He was educated in Switzerland and at St Andrews University. <ref>[http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article402174.ece Let’s talk: ex-MI6 man plans terror summit], by [[Stephen grey]], [[The Times]],12 December 2004.</ref> |
==Mi6 career== | ==Mi6 career== | ||
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::His posting to Ireland in 1975 led to his first role as a British negotiator — with the IRA. Three years later he moved to South Africa where as “first secretary and press officer” he joined mediation with Swapo rebels in Namibia. | ::His posting to Ireland in 1975 led to his first role as a British negotiator — with the IRA. Three years later he moved to South Africa where as “first secretary and press officer” he joined mediation with Swapo rebels in Namibia. | ||
| − | ::It was during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, when he was stationed for three years in neighbouring Pakistan, that Crooke first met militant Islamists. The mid-1980s were a wild time on the Afghan frontier, with American money and weapons pouring in to support those fighting the Soviet army. <ref>[http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article402174.ece?token=null&offset=12 Let’s talk: ex-MI6 man plans terror summit]</ref> | + | ::It was during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, when he was stationed for three years in neighbouring Pakistan, that Crooke first met militant Islamists. The mid-1980s were a wild time on the Afghan frontier, with American money and weapons pouring in to support those fighting the Soviet army. <ref>[http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article402174.ece?token=null&offset=12 Let’s talk: ex-MI6 man plans terror summit], by [[Stephen grey]], [[The Times]],12 December 2004.</ref> |
==Affiliations== | ==Affiliations== | ||
Revision as of 23:15, 24 February 2008
Former MI6 agent and founder of Conflicts Forum.
- Born in Ireland in 1949, Crooke was brought up in Africa, mainly on a farm near Harare in what was then Rhodesia, where his father farmed tobacco. He was educated in Switzerland and at St Andrews University. [1]
Mi6 career
Crooke has been described as an 'expert in "parallel diplomacy", the use of covert talks when normal channels have broken down', a field which is something of an MI6 specialty. [2] His Conflicts Forum biography states that he has 'direct experience of conflict over a period of 30 years in Ireland, South Africa, Namibia, Afghanistan, Cambodia and Colombia.' [3]
- His posting to Ireland in 1975 led to his first role as a British negotiator — with the IRA. Three years later he moved to South Africa where as “first secretary and press officer” he joined mediation with Swapo rebels in Namibia.
- It was during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, when he was stationed for three years in neighbouring Pakistan, that Crooke first met militant Islamists. The mid-1980s were a wild time on the Afghan frontier, with American money and weapons pouring in to support those fighting the Soviet army. [4]
Affiliations
Notes
- ↑ Let’s talk: ex-MI6 man plans terror summit, by Stephen grey, The Times,12 December 2004.
- ↑ Palestine peacemaker comes home, by Michael Smith, Telegraph, 25 September 2003.
- ↑ Conflicts Forum - Alistair Crooke, accessed 24 February 2008.
- ↑ Let’s talk: ex-MI6 man plans terror summit, by Stephen grey, The Times,12 December 2004.
