On a few occasions since becoming a public figure, Tom Tugendhat has posted video-selfies from the UK Parliament, wishing all his “Muslim friends” an Eid Mubarak in the fluid Arabic he learnt over years living in the Middle East.
This Eid Al Adha however, the Conservative leadership candidate kept his social media channels singularly focused on the credentials he believes make him fit to be the UK’s next prime minister.
“It’s time for renewal,” wrote the MP for Tonbridge and Malling when he launched his leadership bid last week. “I have served my country before. Now I hope to answer the call as prime minister.”
Who is Tom Tugendhat?
With more than a decade in the Territorial Army, the 49-year-old says being on the ground in the conflict zones of Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya give him a unique edge over the 10 others vying for the biggest post in British politics.
His bold media campaign is peppered with tales from the battlefield that are meant to make up for his lack of ministerial experience.
From being shot in the chin and chest — "but that hit the body armour so it was OK" — during a 10-hour firefight in Iraq, a shooting he told The Sunday Times "he hadn't noticed" because he "was focused on other things", to special missions building governments in Afghanistan, Mr Tugendhat says his frontline experience demonstrates that he "can have a vision, lead a team and deliver a plan".
On Monday, the Foreign Affairs Committee chairman said what he offers is not “from Whitehall, it’s from the real world”.
“It’s from Afghanistan and Iraq, where I served in the military, and it’s from around the world where I’ve worked in different ways,” the Tory MP told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
“What I’m bringing here is the experience of wider diplomatic and military work but, of course, also the experience of actually having run organisations in some of the hardest places in the world.”
Mr Tugendhat’s distinguished, albeit slightly opaque, military career began in the Middle East with the Territorial Army, before moving to Afghanistan with the UK Foreign Office and ending in Westminster working for the then-chief of defence staff Lord David Richards.
The language of diplomacy
A practising Catholic, Mr Tugendhat first learnt Arabic in Yemen as part of his master's degree in Islamics at the University of Cambridge, after reading theology at Bristol University. After moving to Beirut to work as a journalist, and later a communications specialist, the London-born politician returned to the UK and joined the British Army.
French, Pashto, Dari and Russian — something he has picked up watching cartoons in the language with his children — are among the other tongues he speaks.
During the allied invasion of Iraq, his knowledge of Arabic — a language he has previously described as his “favourite one to argue in” — was called upon by the Royal Marines who drafted him as an intelligence corps officer on the ground.
The foreign affairs specialist has described working with “various branches of the military” and “alongside other government departments around the world” during his decade with the Territorial Army.
The big projects he worked on include helping with the distribution of $4.5-billion of the new Iraqi dinar in 2004 as part of postwar reconstruction efforts.
In 2005, he travelled to Afghanistan, where he spent four years working on similar post-war projects, including the setting up of the national security council after the Taliban was overthrown by Nato forces.
With only "Afghans and a couple of bodyguards”, he went to Helmand, a province overrun for decades by warlords and drug dealers, to help establish a civilian government.
The veteran has been critical of the government’s response in Afghanistan, describing last summer’s withdrawal as “heart-breaking”. At the time, he received a round of applause for an emotional speech in the House of Commons, in which he described struggling through “anger, grief and rage” at the unfolding events.
Clash with Boris Johnson's approach
Mr Tugendhat called it a “betrayal” and a “let down” for the Afghan and British people, fuelling a dislike of Mr Johnson’s policies and approach over which the two politicians have clashed at select committee hearings.
Pitting himself as a “fresh start”, Mr Tugendhat’s antipathy towards the prime minister may mean he loses out on votes from any of Mr Johnson’s remaining loyalists.
When it comes to tax, however, the centrist Conservative is in line with almost all of the others running to be the next leader.
Mr Tugendhat’s economic policy would, he says, include reversing the rise in National Insurance and lowering "taxes across every aspect of society” but he would not consider cutting corporation tax without “a 10-year economic plan”.
“You can’t simply look at each of these taxes as a one-off, you need to look at it as part of a whole,” he said in an interview with Sky News on Monday. "The reality is this economy needs not only lower taxes for growth, but it also needs sound money, and that is why we need to deliver both."
Improving Britain’s foreign relations, particular with the European Union after Brexit, is high on the Conservative candidate’s campaigning agenda.
With a French-Russian wife and European heritage of his own, the former Remainer has said the presence of both Brexit party and Leave politicians on his team should be reassuring for Brexiteers.
He told reporters he wants a “clean start” to “these six-year-old arguments we have been having” and that Britain should “take advantage” of Brexit and tear up EU regulations to conduct new trade deals.
“Boris has quite rightly got Brexit done," he said. "What we now need to do is deliver the benefits.”
PAST 10 BRITISH GRAND PRIX WINNERS
2016 - Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
2015 - Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
2014 - Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes-GP)
2013 - Nico Rosberg (Mercedes-GP)
2012 - Mark Webber (Red Bull Racing)
2011 - Fernando Alonso (Ferrari)
2010 - Mark Webber (Red Bull Racing)
2009 - Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull Racing)
2008 - Lewis Hamilton (McLaren)
2007 - Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari)
England squad
Moeen Ali, James Anderson, Jofra Archer, Jonny Bairstow, Dominic Bess, James Bracey, Stuart Broad, Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Zak Crawley, Sam Curran, Joe Denly, Ben Foakes, Lewis Gregory, Keaton Jennings, Dan Lawrence, Jack Leach, Saqib Mahmood, Craig Overton, Jamie Overton, Matthew Parkinson, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Joe Root, Dom Sibley, Ben Stokes, Olly Stone, Amar Virdi, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Rooney's club record
At Everton Appearances: 77; Goals: 17
At Manchester United Appearances: 559; Goals: 253
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
How to donate
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
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6026 – Dh 200
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
Brief scores:
Manchester City 3
Bernardo Silva 16', Sterling 57', Gundogan 79'
Bournemouth 1
Wilson 44'
Man of the match: Leroy Sane (Manchester City)
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
Neymar's bio
Total club appearances 411
Total goals scored 241
Appearances for Barca 186
Goals scored for Barca 105
Lowest Test scores
26 - New Zealand v England at Auckland, March 1955
30 - South Africa v England at Port Elizabeth, Feb 1896
30 - South Africa v England at Birmingham, June 1924
35 - South Africa v England at Cape Town, April 1899
36 - South Africa v Australia at Melbourne, Feb. 1932
36 - Australia v England at Birmingham, May 1902
36 - India v Australia at Adelaide, Dec. 2020
38 - Ireland v England at Lord's, July 2019
42 - New Zealand v Australia in Wellington, March 1946
42 - Australia v England in Sydney, Feb. 1888
Coming soon
Torno Subito by Massimo Bottura
When the W Dubai – The Palm hotel opens at the end of this year, one of the highlights will be Massimo Bottura’s new restaurant, Torno Subito, which promises “to take guests on a journey back to 1960s Italy”. It is the three Michelinstarred chef’s first venture in Dubai and should be every bit as ambitious as you would expect from the man whose restaurant in Italy, Osteria Francescana, was crowned number one in this year’s list of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants.
Akira Back Dubai
Another exciting opening at the W Dubai – The Palm hotel is South Korean chef Akira Back’s new restaurant, which will continue to showcase some of the finest Asian food in the world. Back, whose Seoul restaurant, Dosa, won a Michelin star last year, describes his menu as, “an innovative Japanese cuisine prepared with a Korean accent”.
Dinner by Heston Blumenthal
The highly experimental chef, whose dishes are as much about spectacle as taste, opens his first restaurant in Dubai next year. Housed at The Royal Atlantis Resort & Residences, Dinner by Heston Blumenthal will feature contemporary twists on recipes that date back to the 1300s, including goats’ milk cheesecake. Always remember with a Blumenthal dish: nothing is quite as it seems.
Evacuations to France hit by controversy
- Over 500 Gazans have been evacuated to France since November 2023
- Evacuations were paused after a student already in France posted anti-Semitic content and was subsequently expelled to Qatar
- The Foreign Ministry launched a review to determine how authorities failed to detect the posts before her entry
- Artists and researchers fall under a programme called Pause that began in 2017
- It has benefited more than 700 people from 44 countries, including Syria, Turkey, Iran, and Sudan
- Since the start of the Gaza war, it has also included 45 Gazan beneficiaries
- Unlike students, they are allowed to bring their families to France
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Uefa Nations League: How it works
The Uefa Nations League, introduced last year, has reached its final stage, to be played over five days in northern Portugal. The format of its closing tournament is compact, spread over two semi-finals, with the first, Portugal versus Switzerland in Porto on Wednesday evening, and the second, England against the Netherlands, in Guimaraes, on Thursday.
The winners of each semi will then meet at Porto’s Dragao stadium on Sunday, with the losing semi-finalists contesting a third-place play-off in Guimaraes earlier that day.
Qualifying for the final stage was via League A of the inaugural Nations League, in which the top 12 European countries according to Uefa's co-efficient seeding system were divided into four groups, the teams playing each other twice between September and November. Portugal, who finished above Italy and Poland, successfully bid to host the finals.
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
