Working The Trapline — Boer, Redcoats & Mercenaries

The First Anglo-Boer War of 1880-81, in which the Transvaal won independence from Great Britain, is overshadowed by the larger and more significant Anglo-Boer War of 1899-1902. It is, however, worth knowing something about — and Christian Parkinson makes that easy and enjoyable with a new long-form doco, Redcoat vs. Boer on the Redcoat History Channel.

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Synchronicity. BBC just dropped a documentary on Q-squad-style counter-terrorism operations and targeted killings in Yemen. It offers Continuity & Persistence with the Mau Mau and MRF issues we’ve recently explored. It also calls up The Feathermen and The Killer Elite.

From BBC:

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has funded politically motivated assassinations in Yemen, a BBC investigation has found.

Training provided by American mercenaries – hired by the UAE in 2015 – has then been used by Emiratis to instruct locals, sparking a surge in targeted killings, a whistleblower says.

The findings come as conflict in Yemen has returned to the international spotlight following attacks on ships in the Red Sea.

The UAE government has denied the allegations in our investigation — that it had assassinated those without links to terrorism — saying they were “false and without merit.”

The killing spree in Yemen — more than 100 assassinations in a three-year period — is just one element of an ongoing bitter internecine conflict pitting several international powers against each other in the Middle East’s poorest country.

BBC Arabic’s Nawal al-Maghafi reveals how the UAE hired mercenaries to conduct targeted assassinations of its political enemies in Yemen, with American mercenaries starting the killings in 2015.

General Kitson’s legacy lives on — in all its controversy and moral ambiguity…

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I have mixed feelings about this. From CBS:

NEW YORK — The American Museum of Natural History is closing two major galleries displaying Native American objects in response to new federal regulations that require museums to obtain consent from tribes.

In December, the Department of the Interior expanded regulations implemented under the 1990 Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, NAGPRA, to require tribal consent for the exhibition of and research on artifacts.

On Saturday, the museum’s Eastern Woodlands and Great Plains halls will be shut down. Two displays were already empty Friday.

The museum is also covering seven other display cases as it goes through its collection to make sure it is in compliance…

In a letter to staff Friday, Museum President Sean Decatur wrote:

“While the actions we are taking this week may seem sudden, they reflect a growing urgency among all museums to change their relationships to, and representation of, Indigenous cultures. The Halls we are closing are vestiges of an era when museums such as ours did not respect the values, perspectives, and indeed shared humanity of Indigenous peoples. Actions that may feel sudden to some may seem long overdue to others.”

I understand and concur with the need to more respectfully handle museum displays on native cultures, especially around funerary and ceremonial artifacts. I just hope that shutting exhibits down doesn’t create inertia that leaves displays empty.

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There’s been a flurry of news as production on new series based on Jack Carr’s novels gets underway. The latest is that Tom Hopper has been cast as protagonist James Reese’s brother-in-arms Raife Hastings. Raife is a native of Zimbabwe. He’s a bit of a throwback — favors a recurve bow, for instance — and he and Reese have an ongoing debate over the relative merits and demerits of Land Rovers vs. the old Toyota Land Cruiser. Raife is a loyal Land Rover Man. I know.

This is perfect casting — and I’m most pleased to see Billy Bones from my beloved Black Sails land in another favorite franchise.

From Deadline:

Hopper will play the series regular role of Raife Hastings, described as a hunter, protector, guardian and Navy SEAL.

Co-created by The Terminal List author Jack Carr and Season 1 creator-showrunner David DiGilio, the prequel, set five years before the mothership series, is an elevated espionage thriller that takes viewers on Ben Edwards’ journey from Navy SEAL to CIA paramilitary operator, exploring the darker side of warfare and the human cost that comes with it.