Craig Murray is a former British diplomat who was the ambassador to Uzbekistan and has held posts in Nigeria, Poland and Ghana. His assignments in Poland included work towards the nation’s post-communist transition and entry into the European Union. He is better known for his human rights activism, and being a leading advocate for the release of Julian Assange. He has spoken out vocally over the UK’s involvement in aiding the US and the conjuring of false evidence leading to the Iraq invasion. After leaving the Liberal Democrat Party, Craig has been more active in the Scottish independence movement. For several years he also served as the rector of the University of Dundee.  He was also arrested in violation of his freedom of speech for blogging about a Scottish scandal involving Scotland’s former First Minister, which led to his serving time in prison. This month, Craig took his complaint to the United Nations.  In 2006, he received the Sam Adams Award for Integrity in Intelligence for his campaigning against torture, nd he has rejected three honors from the late Queen Elizabeth. Craig is also the author of several books, notably “Murder in Samarkand” about his experiences in Central Asia, and “Sikunder Burnes: Master of the Great Game” — an non-fictional historical spy story that revolved around  the rivalry between the British and Russian empires’ maneuvers in Central Asia during the 19th century.    He has also authored over 130 peer-reviewed articles for professional and academic publications. Craig’s website with articles is CraigMurray.org.uk