Ian Birrell is a British columnist, foreign correspondent, and contributing editor at the Mail on Sunday. His writing has been published in numerous media outlets, including The Guardian, The Wall Street Journal, The Economist, and The Financial Times. Birrell has reported from Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia, Somalia, Swaziland, Syria, and Zimbabwe, among many other countries. He served as deputy editor-in-chief of The Independent for 12 years and has held senior executive positions at several other newspapers. In 2014, the London Press Club awarded the prestigious Edgar Wallace Award to Birrell. He is also the co-founder of Africa Express, which promotes African music and unites musicians from around the world.