0:00:02 > 0:00:05The Tropic of Cancer marks the northern border of the Tropics,
0:00:05 > 0:00:10the most beautiful, brilliant, and blighted region of the world.
0:00:10 > 0:00:15I've already travelled around the equator and the southern border of the Tropics,
0:00:15 > 0:00:19but following the Tropic of Cancer will be my toughest journey yet.
0:00:19 > 0:00:24This Tropic cuts through central America, the Caribbean,
0:00:24 > 0:00:27North Africa, the kingdoms of Arabia, India,
0:00:27 > 0:00:31and on through Asia, to finish in Hawaii.
0:00:31 > 0:00:37It's 23,000 miles across deserts, rivers and mountains.
0:00:37 > 0:00:40Along the way, I encounter extraordinary people,
0:00:40 > 0:00:41simmering conflicts,
0:00:41 > 0:00:45and some of the most stunning landscapes on our planet.
0:00:46 > 0:00:50This second leg of my journey will take me across North Africa.
0:00:52 > 0:00:54I'm travelling east, more than 2,500 miles
0:00:54 > 0:00:57across the Sahara, to Libya's border with Egypt.
0:00:59 > 0:01:02It's a forgotten land of bitter conflict
0:01:02 > 0:01:04and extraordinary natural beauty.
0:01:04 > 0:01:06Thank you, my God.
0:01:08 > 0:01:11As I journey east, I ride one of the longest trains in the world...
0:01:13 > 0:01:16..learn the art of camel trading...
0:01:16 > 0:01:19- What do you think about this one? - CAMEL GROWLS
0:01:19 > 0:01:23..and race across some of the most spectacular sand dunes on the planet.
0:01:36 > 0:01:40I'm starting another leg of my journey around the Tropic of Cancer.
0:01:40 > 0:01:43I'm next to the Atlantic Ocean in the little-known land
0:01:43 > 0:01:46of Western Sahara and, on this bit of the trip,
0:01:46 > 0:01:48I'm travelling across North Africa.
0:01:50 > 0:01:54One of the most sparsely populated countries in the world,
0:01:54 > 0:01:57Western Sahara is mostly windswept desert.
0:02:00 > 0:02:03But a few hardy travellers do make it out here.
0:02:03 > 0:02:07The windy conditions are perfect for learning to fly.
0:02:24 > 0:02:27Simon, you're welcome in my secret place,
0:02:27 > 0:02:30I hope you will like it for this.
0:02:30 > 0:02:32I hope I'll like it, I just hope I'll survive!
0:02:32 > 0:02:34Present your kite, man.
0:02:34 > 0:02:38'Aziz Oakhrin agreed to give me a crash course in kite surfing.'
0:02:38 > 0:02:42- ..kite surfer man.- Kite surfing man like you.- Yeah? Like me.
0:02:42 > 0:02:45- A champion, a champion. - You will be more than me.
0:02:45 > 0:02:48Aziz, you remember I've never done this before.
0:02:50 > 0:02:51Oh, goodness.
0:02:51 > 0:02:55'It usually takes several days to get good enough to stand on a board
0:02:55 > 0:02:59'but Aziz reckoned he could at least teach me to bodysurf.
0:03:00 > 0:03:02'I wasn't so sure.'
0:03:04 > 0:03:07- Aziz, I feel like you're holding on to me.- Yeah?- For dear life.
0:03:07 > 0:03:09Not, no, no.
0:03:09 > 0:03:11Aziz, I feel like you've let go!
0:03:11 > 0:03:14- OK, let go your bar, let go your bar.- Let go of the bar.
0:03:15 > 0:03:17- All right.- Let's try again.
0:03:17 > 0:03:19Yeah. Left side.
0:03:19 > 0:03:23- Left side up.- Just when you pull, push then, push then, push. Yeah.
0:03:23 > 0:03:26Slow, slow, yeah.
0:03:26 > 0:03:28- All right.- The power in this!
0:03:28 > 0:03:32How the hell are you supposed to do this when you're in the water?
0:03:32 > 0:03:34Yeah, yeah, yeah, we'll see.
0:03:36 > 0:03:39OK, well, at least I'm keeping it up.
0:03:39 > 0:03:42- Up, yeah. OK, good.- Oh! Balls!
0:03:42 > 0:03:46'It was time to brave the ocean.
0:03:46 > 0:03:49'The powerful winds can take these guys 50 feet into the air.
0:03:51 > 0:03:55'I was just worried about being dragged out to sea.'
0:03:55 > 0:03:59- Here we go.- Come in before you...
0:03:59 > 0:04:00You can start now.
0:04:00 > 0:04:04Like you swim and your legs behind you,
0:04:04 > 0:04:08like you are swimming, yes. More up, more up.
0:04:08 > 0:04:10Yes. Not so strong your hand.
0:04:17 > 0:04:22'It was great fun, but sadly I was rather lacking in natural skill.'
0:04:24 > 0:04:26Yeah, OK.
0:04:26 > 0:04:28We're going to break him!
0:04:33 > 0:04:37Just along the coast is one of Western Sahara's few towns,
0:04:37 > 0:04:41Dakhla, almost bang on the Tropic of Cancer.
0:04:43 > 0:04:46This remote outpost, an edge of the world sort of place,
0:04:46 > 0:04:49was founded by Spanish settlers in the 16th century, and
0:04:49 > 0:04:54it later became one of Spain's many colonies throughout the Tropics.
0:04:58 > 0:05:02When the Spanish finally left Western Sahara in 1975,
0:05:02 > 0:05:04the Moroccans moved in from the north,
0:05:04 > 0:05:07claiming the territory had originally belonged to them.
0:05:12 > 0:05:15There was a bitter and bloody war between the Moroccans
0:05:15 > 0:05:19and a guerrilla army made up of the indigenous Saharawi people
0:05:19 > 0:05:23who wanted Western Sahara to be an independent country.
0:05:25 > 0:05:28The Moroccans won and annexed Western Sahara.
0:05:28 > 0:05:31But should it be part of Morocco?
0:05:31 > 0:05:36My Moroccan guide in Dakhla, Aziz Rafiq, has no doubts.
0:05:36 > 0:05:38Aziz, I'm a bit confused.
0:05:38 > 0:05:44Are we in...are we in Western Sahara or are we in Morocco?
0:05:44 > 0:05:47Yeah, we are in Morocco in a city called Dakhla,
0:05:47 > 0:05:50which is situated in the south of Morocco.
0:05:50 > 0:05:54So, where we are now, for you, this is Morocco?
0:05:54 > 0:05:55Yeah, this is Morocco.
0:05:55 > 0:06:00OK. So what is this place Western Sahara then?
0:06:00 > 0:06:03It sounds like then it's...it's a colony of Morocco's.
0:06:03 > 0:06:09Yeah, it used to be a colony, but now it's Moroccan territory.
0:06:09 > 0:06:14And, so, what's drawing Moroccans south from the cities in the north,
0:06:14 > 0:06:18what's drawing them down here to Western Sahara, to Dakhla?
0:06:18 > 0:06:21Many activities, especially the sea, the ocean.
0:06:23 > 0:06:28Tens of thousands of Moroccan settlers have now moved here,
0:06:28 > 0:06:32drawn by the lure of jobs, especially in the fishing industry.
0:06:36 > 0:06:39The fishermen have settled all along the coast of Western Sahara.
0:06:41 > 0:06:45Vast quantities of fish are drawn to the warm, Tropical waters off the coast,
0:06:45 > 0:06:50and settlers are also offered tax breaks by the Moroccan government
0:06:50 > 0:06:51if they move down here.
0:06:52 > 0:06:57Aziz arranged for us to go out to sea with a Moroccan fisherman.
0:07:00 > 0:07:03We're going to sea, mate, we're going to sea.
0:07:07 > 0:07:09Oh!
0:07:10 > 0:07:13Yeah, we're out at sea.
0:07:14 > 0:07:18Abdul Haq is one of the thousands who've moved down here from the north.
0:07:21 > 0:07:24What brought you to Dakhla, why did you want to come here?
0:07:24 > 0:07:27Was it for the work, was it for the fishing?
0:07:27 > 0:07:31TRANSLATION: Yes, I came to Dakhla to work.
0:07:31 > 0:07:35I had a brother who was serving here in the army.
0:07:35 > 0:07:38My brother's a soldier. I came to stay with him here
0:07:38 > 0:07:41and I started to work as a fisherman.
0:07:41 > 0:07:45Many countries around the world seem to view Western Sahara
0:07:45 > 0:07:49as being a colony of Morocco.
0:07:49 > 0:07:55Do you see this being part of Morocco the country?
0:07:55 > 0:07:59Well, the Sahara is Morocco. Why?
0:07:59 > 0:08:03Because, when you look into history, you'll see that those who say
0:08:03 > 0:08:07this is Western Sahara rather than Moroccan Sahara are wrong.
0:08:07 > 0:08:10It is 100% Moroccan.
0:08:10 > 0:08:13As Moroccans, we are here in our own country.
0:08:13 > 0:08:17This land does not belong to foreigners, it belongs to us.
0:08:17 > 0:08:20It is the homeland of our ancestors.
0:08:22 > 0:08:25'It's also a very lucrative area.
0:08:25 > 0:08:30'On a good day, a single boat can bring in up to 200 kilos of octopus.'
0:08:30 > 0:08:33You got one? Oh, look at that!
0:08:34 > 0:08:37Not small either, is it? I was expecting it to be...
0:08:37 > 0:08:40I was expecting it to be a small one.
0:08:40 > 0:08:43Oh, you poor thing.
0:08:44 > 0:08:48'Once caught, the octopus are frozen for export to Europe and Japan.
0:08:49 > 0:08:55'It's hardly surprising Morocco was so keen to stake its claim to Western Sahara.
0:08:55 > 0:09:01'The fishing industry here is worth tens of millions of pounds each year in export earnings.
0:09:01 > 0:09:05'The Moroccans are determined to keep hold of Western Sahara.
0:09:05 > 0:09:10'But they maintain control with a heavy police and military presence
0:09:10 > 0:09:14'and wherever I went I was followed by plain-clothes secret police.
0:09:16 > 0:09:21'Many of the local Saharawi people have fled into exile since the Moroccans took over.
0:09:21 > 0:09:26'Those who are left now claim they've been sidelined in their own land
0:09:26 > 0:09:29'by what they say is an illegal occupation.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32'In order to meet up with some of these Saharawis,
0:09:32 > 0:09:36'we had to give our guide and the secret police the slip.'
0:09:40 > 0:09:46We've heard one side of the story of Western Sahara so far.
0:09:46 > 0:09:50So, we've rented a car and we're heading off now
0:09:50 > 0:09:53to try and meet up with some people
0:09:53 > 0:09:58who can tell us the other side, the Saharawi side.
0:09:58 > 0:10:02And we're desperately trying to avoid being followed,
0:10:02 > 0:10:05really to avoid getting anybody else into trouble.
0:10:05 > 0:10:09So we only know the first name of the person
0:10:09 > 0:10:12that we're going to be meeting.
0:10:12 > 0:10:15And we're going to be meeting them, I think, in this petrol station,
0:10:15 > 0:10:18so I think we're just going to pull in here...
0:10:22 > 0:10:25..and wait for them to come and find us really.
0:10:28 > 0:10:31I think over here in the darkness, don't you?
0:10:33 > 0:10:35Let's go over there, there's a...
0:10:38 > 0:10:42Here we go, we're slightly just on the edge of the petrol station,
0:10:42 > 0:10:45this is quite nerve-racking, actually.
0:10:48 > 0:10:52So, I'm just going to send a text message to our contact,
0:10:52 > 0:10:57and hopefully they'll come and find us and take us to a meeting.
0:11:02 > 0:11:04There's cars driving around.
0:11:04 > 0:11:06MAN: This is them.
0:11:06 > 0:11:07That's them.
0:11:09 > 0:11:12- Do you think?- No, no.
0:11:12 > 0:11:13That's him. OK, let's go.
0:11:13 > 0:11:15- That's him, that's him. - Are you sure?
0:11:15 > 0:11:17Put on your lights, yeah, put on your lights. That's him, I'm sure.
0:11:17 > 0:11:22OK, OK, that's him there. OK, let's go.
0:11:29 > 0:11:31So, we're now in the back streets of Dakhla.
0:11:31 > 0:11:34God only knows where he's leading us.
0:11:39 > 0:11:41I'll tell you, this is quite tense business.
0:11:45 > 0:11:49- We're going to stop over here. - Ah, switch off.
0:12:01 > 0:12:05'Our contact, Rashid, who campaigns for the human rights of the Saharawi people,
0:12:05 > 0:12:09'had led us to a safe house where other activists were hiding.
0:12:11 > 0:12:15'Rashid says he's prepared to risk arrest, or worse, at the hands
0:12:15 > 0:12:19'of the Moroccan authorities to tell his story to the outside world.'
0:12:20 > 0:12:24Finally get to see you in some light. Shukran, shukran.
0:12:26 > 0:12:27Oh.
0:12:29 > 0:12:34Well, the Moroccans say that this is Morocco.
0:12:34 > 0:12:36They say that this is Moroccan land.
0:12:36 > 0:12:38Who do you say this land belongs to?
0:12:38 > 0:12:41HE SPEAKS IN HIS NATIVE TONGUE
0:12:41 > 0:12:44TRANSLATION: What we have to say about the Moroccans
0:12:44 > 0:12:46is that, as everybody knows,
0:12:46 > 0:12:50they came to this country and occupied it in 1975.
0:12:50 > 0:12:55We're still asking for our independence, no more, and no less.
0:12:58 > 0:13:02There's a lot of oppression here. The secret police are everywhere.
0:13:02 > 0:13:03There's no freedom of speech.
0:13:03 > 0:13:06We can't campaign for independence openly.
0:13:06 > 0:13:08We can't even raise the Saharawi flag
0:13:08 > 0:13:11or talk about the history of the Saharawi people.
0:13:13 > 0:13:19'Morocco has been accused of committing human rights abuses in Western Sahara,
0:13:19 > 0:13:22'and Rashid said he had been picked up by the police and beaten
0:13:22 > 0:13:26'for attending a human rights convention a few weeks previously.
0:13:26 > 0:13:31'All the activists had stories about police brutality.'
0:13:31 > 0:13:36So, these are photos of BLEEP here.
0:13:37 > 0:13:42Some really, really quite severe bruising on his body.
0:13:44 > 0:13:48I mean, here you can see bad bruising
0:13:48 > 0:13:54and what looks like almost whip marks or beating marks on his back,
0:13:54 > 0:13:59and bad bruising on the back of his legs here.
0:13:59 > 0:14:01Very bad bruising here.
0:14:02 > 0:14:08'I couldn't verify their stories but a recent report by Human Rights Watch
0:14:08 > 0:14:12'accused the Moroccan authorities of using arbitrary arrest, violence
0:14:12 > 0:14:17'and harassment against activists like Rashid and his friends.
0:14:17 > 0:14:19'And after we met him, Rashid says he was
0:14:19 > 0:14:23'questioned about talking to us and severely beaten by Moroccan police.
0:14:23 > 0:14:27'Then, last October, Rashid and other activists were arrested again.
0:14:27 > 0:14:31'Amnesty International has described their imprisonment
0:14:31 > 0:14:33'as a serious attack on freedom of expression.'
0:14:35 > 0:14:38'The Moroccan government wouldn't comment on Rashid's case,
0:14:38 > 0:14:41'but, in the past, they denied widespread police abuses
0:14:41 > 0:14:44'and defended their human rights record.
0:14:44 > 0:14:48'Following the Tropic of Cancer was showing me this forgotten conflict.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51'I wanted to follow the Tropic east,
0:14:51 > 0:14:55'to where more than 100,000 Saharawi refugees are living in desert camps.
0:14:55 > 0:14:59'But, to get there, I had to embark on a dangerous diversion that
0:14:59 > 0:15:01'took me deep into the Sahara.
0:15:01 > 0:15:04'First, though, it was time for a stop on the Tropic.'
0:15:04 > 0:15:07We're basically very close to it now.
0:15:08 > 0:15:11It doesn't look as though anybody has marked it here
0:15:11 > 0:15:15with a little Tropic of Cancer monument, unfortunately.
0:15:21 > 0:15:24- Look.- It says it!- Yeah. - Oh, fantastic.
0:15:27 > 0:15:30Hey. Right by the road.
0:15:30 > 0:15:32Come on, let's go and have a look.
0:15:34 > 0:15:35I actually find it quite exciting
0:15:35 > 0:15:39because this is quite a nice simple sign.
0:15:39 > 0:15:44It's not a big flashy thing, it's not a big tourist resort here
0:15:44 > 0:15:47in the middle of the desert, as far as we can see.
0:15:47 > 0:15:50But it says what it is. This is the Tropic of Cancer.
0:15:50 > 0:15:52This is it.
0:15:54 > 0:15:56I'm following the Tropic of Cancer east,
0:15:56 > 0:15:58but I can't do that here
0:15:58 > 0:16:01because the Moroccans have built a vast fortified wall through
0:16:01 > 0:16:05Western Sahara, and surrounded it with millions of land mines.
0:16:05 > 0:16:08It divides Moroccan-controlled territory from the area
0:16:08 > 0:16:12held by the Polisario, the Saharawis' independence movement.
0:16:16 > 0:16:19To get to the Saharawi refugee camps,
0:16:19 > 0:16:23we have to head south to Mauritania, to go around the wall.
0:16:25 > 0:16:28They really have got the kitchen sink up there. Look at all that!
0:16:34 > 0:16:37So, this looks like the border
0:16:37 > 0:16:40between Morocco and Mauritania just up ahead.
0:16:40 > 0:16:46We can't really film at borders, but you can see the flags fluttering
0:16:46 > 0:16:48and it looks like we're going to be
0:16:48 > 0:16:52leaving this country and heading on to our next.
0:16:53 > 0:16:55'But, before entering Mauritania,
0:16:55 > 0:16:58'we had to cross three miles of no-man's land.'
0:16:59 > 0:17:06'We had a new driver and a new guide, Mauritanian journalist Hamdi El Hassan.
0:17:06 > 0:17:11'This stretch of no-man's land was also heavily mined by the Moroccans
0:17:11 > 0:17:15'to prevent the Mauritanians from seizing any of Western Sahara.'
0:17:16 > 0:17:21Just up ahead, there's a sort of graveyard, really,
0:17:21 > 0:17:26for cars that have been blown up by mines as they pass through the area.
0:17:28 > 0:17:29'Few vehicles make this crossing,
0:17:29 > 0:17:32'and the route has still not been cleared of mines.
0:17:32 > 0:17:36'We were trusting our lives to a driver we'd only just met,
0:17:36 > 0:17:40'and relying on his local knowledge to get us across the minefield.'
0:17:44 > 0:17:47I think... Is our driver asking which way to go?
0:17:50 > 0:17:51That's a bit frightening.
0:17:51 > 0:17:54THEY SPEAK IN THEIR NATIVE TONGUE
0:17:59 > 0:18:01Hamdi, does he...does he know where we're going?
0:18:01 > 0:18:03No, he doesn't know, but I know.
0:18:14 > 0:18:21So, just up ahead, we're finally coming to the gates of Mauritania.
0:18:21 > 0:18:25And, honestly, never have I been so glad to see a border post.
0:18:33 > 0:18:36Nouadhibou is the second city of Mauritania,
0:18:36 > 0:18:39an Islamic state and former French colony.
0:18:39 > 0:18:43It's south of the Tropic of Cancer which roughly divides
0:18:43 > 0:18:46Arabic North Africa from sub-Saharan black Africa.
0:18:57 > 0:19:01From here, an 18-hour train ride would take us to the northern city
0:19:01 > 0:19:05of Zouerat and back towards the Saharawi refugee camps.
0:19:05 > 0:19:08We stopped by the market to pick up some fuel for the journey
0:19:08 > 0:19:12and got a flavour of the culture in this little-known country.
0:19:12 > 0:19:14I think we should get some fruit.
0:19:14 > 0:19:17We could get some tins of stuff.
0:19:18 > 0:19:22So, we just want some normal dates from these young gentlemen.
0:19:26 > 0:19:29Get your fingers in there!
0:19:29 > 0:19:30It's OK.
0:19:30 > 0:19:33You need to get, what? A scarf, a turban?
0:19:33 > 0:19:35Scarf and a boubou maybe.
0:19:35 > 0:19:40- A boubou?- A gown that most of the people here wear.
0:19:42 > 0:19:47Either you take this one, which is not
0:19:47 > 0:19:50decorated in such a way, or keep it...
0:19:50 > 0:19:52SHE SPEAKS IN HER NATIVE TONGUE
0:19:52 > 0:19:55- TRANSLATION: - We don't have any problems here.
0:19:55 > 0:19:57Mauritania has lots of wealth.
0:19:57 > 0:20:02We have camels, we have goats, we have cattle, we eat day and night.
0:20:02 > 0:20:06We have our breakfast, we have our lunch, we eat several times a day.
0:20:06 > 0:20:10We are very fat. I have a big belly because I'm eating well.
0:20:10 > 0:20:13So no problem here in Mauritania.
0:20:20 > 0:20:27- She seemed quite proud, almost, of her size.- Yes.
0:20:27 > 0:20:32You know, it belongs to Mauritanian beauty culture
0:20:32 > 0:20:36that the women should be fat here in the country.
0:20:36 > 0:20:38Hamdi, what do you prefer then,
0:20:38 > 0:20:41do you prefer a slim woman or a big woman?
0:20:41 > 0:20:49I like a fat woman, not too fat, overweight, but I like fat woman,
0:20:49 > 0:20:52because you have just to use your wisdom.
0:20:52 > 0:20:55When you are touching bones,
0:20:55 > 0:20:59you are as if touching rocks or stones.
0:20:59 > 0:21:06Whereas, when you are touching a fat woman, you are touching smooth flesh
0:21:06 > 0:21:11and a little bit, something that is a little bit exciting.
0:21:12 > 0:21:15Let me explain you one issue.
0:21:15 > 0:21:20She's beautiful when she has big buttocks and big...
0:21:20 > 0:21:22- Big buttocks.- Big buttocks?- Yes.
0:21:22 > 0:21:27Is that what you're after!
0:21:27 > 0:21:30THEY LAUGH This is the culture.
0:21:35 > 0:21:39'But women's weight has been a serious issue in Mauritania.
0:21:39 > 0:21:43'In a country where size can equal status and desirability,
0:21:43 > 0:21:46'there has been a tradition of force-feeding young girls
0:21:46 > 0:21:50'to fatten them up and improve their marriage prospects.
0:21:50 > 0:21:54'The practice still persists in more remote parts of the country.'
0:21:54 > 0:21:55We've got to the train station,
0:21:55 > 0:21:58well, it's not really a station, it's...a siding.
0:21:58 > 0:22:01And we need to get our bags onto the train fairly quick.
0:22:01 > 0:22:04Hamdi, why don't you go up and we'll pass them up to you?
0:22:04 > 0:22:07Yeah, no problem. No problem, I'll be there.
0:22:10 > 0:22:12We've got one or two bags.
0:22:13 > 0:22:18This is tools kit from the BBC.
0:22:18 > 0:22:21Again, the driver is helpful.
0:22:21 > 0:22:25Again, again, it's a long queue of baggage,
0:22:25 > 0:22:31the BBC has a lot of luggages, like this long train.
0:22:32 > 0:22:34The train transports iron ore
0:22:34 > 0:22:38from mines in Mauritania's desolate interior,
0:22:38 > 0:22:40and we were allowed to hitch a ride.
0:22:40 > 0:22:43So, these are empty at the moment
0:22:43 > 0:22:47because they're heading back towards the mine.
0:22:48 > 0:22:51But, when they come back,
0:22:51 > 0:22:53this is what they're carrying.
0:22:53 > 0:22:56This is the iron ore, this is what it's all about.
0:22:56 > 0:23:00This is what makes our, our cars, our washing machines eventually, or whatever.
0:23:00 > 0:23:01TRAIN HORN BELLOWS
0:23:01 > 0:23:04Oh, we've got to get back on the train!
0:23:04 > 0:23:07The train's going.
0:23:07 > 0:23:10But that's what everyone's after and we're seeing...
0:23:10 > 0:23:13TRAIN RUMBLES
0:23:13 > 0:23:15- THEY LAUGH - Keep going!
0:23:15 > 0:23:16Hurry up, hurry up!
0:23:16 > 0:23:22HAMDI SPEAKS IN HIS NATIVE TONGUE
0:23:23 > 0:23:26Come on, come on, come on, get up, get the camera. OK.
0:23:26 > 0:23:29THEY LAUGH
0:23:35 > 0:23:39So, just over there, that's the front of the train, we're at the back,
0:23:39 > 0:23:45and the rest of it is snaking around in a giant arc ahead of us.
0:23:48 > 0:23:53'With more than 200 wagons, stretching for nearly two miles,
0:23:53 > 0:23:57'this train is one of the longest in the world.'
0:24:25 > 0:24:29'Travelling north-east to Zouerat, close to the Tropic of Cancer,
0:24:29 > 0:24:33'the train skirts around the border of Western Sahara,
0:24:33 > 0:24:35'taking us safely around the danger zone
0:24:35 > 0:24:38'and on to the other side of Morocco's sand wall.
0:24:46 > 0:24:50'Trundling along for more than 400 miles into the night,
0:24:50 > 0:24:54'we were squashed together in a small passenger compartment.
0:24:57 > 0:24:59'Hamdi prepared our feast.'
0:25:00 > 0:25:06This is juice, and this is chong fish.
0:25:06 > 0:25:09- Chong, what did you say? - Er...tuna.- Tuna.
0:25:09 > 0:25:13- I think the tuna is a good bet. - Tuna is a bad word in Mauritania.
0:25:13 > 0:25:14- A bad word?- A bad word.
0:25:14 > 0:25:19- What does it mean in Mauritanian? - The feminine part of the woman.
0:25:19 > 0:25:22It means the what? The family part of the woman?
0:25:24 > 0:25:28- Tuna. Oh, dear.- Ah, pay attention, don't repeat that again.
0:25:28 > 0:25:32- Don't say it.- I like fish, I like fish, I like fish, I like fish.
0:25:32 > 0:25:34You like some tuna?
0:25:34 > 0:25:36Pay attention, don't repeat that again.
0:25:36 > 0:25:37THEY LAUGH
0:25:37 > 0:25:42- I don't like this oil, I like just fish.- All right, sing us another song, though.
0:25:42 > 0:25:44Hurry up, hurry up, please, all right, please.
0:25:44 > 0:25:47All right, I going as fast as I can, you dictator.
0:25:47 > 0:25:50- See on your back, please hide it. - What?
0:25:50 > 0:25:52Hide your back.
0:25:54 > 0:25:58Stop looking at my buttocks! You leave my buttocks out of this.
0:25:58 > 0:26:02Like a wall, no flesh at all. THEY LAUGH
0:26:03 > 0:26:07This is...I am already like a fisherman.
0:26:07 > 0:26:10- I've got three sardines. - Listen, you can't have them all.
0:26:10 > 0:26:13In the core of my bread loaf, this is a great deal.
0:26:13 > 0:26:17No, you can't, put some back. Put some back. Put a fish back.
0:26:17 > 0:26:22No, no, no. I can provide you as a gift this iron empty can
0:26:22 > 0:26:25to provide it to the UK,
0:26:25 > 0:26:30and put it as a sacred relic somewhere in your bedroom.
0:26:30 > 0:26:34I'm very hurt, Hamdi, that you're not sharing them.
0:26:34 > 0:26:37So, Hamdi is eating all the sardines.
0:26:39 > 0:26:42That's all we've got, Hamdi.
0:26:42 > 0:26:45I know you've already your empty can, this is enough for you.
0:26:45 > 0:26:48THEY LAUGH
0:27:04 > 0:27:07Mauritania doesn't have much in the way of industry.
0:27:07 > 0:27:09But what it does have is iron ore
0:27:09 > 0:27:14which accounts for an incredible 40% of the country's exports.
0:27:16 > 0:27:21The desert town of Zouerat has sprung up around the mines in this area.
0:27:24 > 0:27:27'We said goodbye to Hamdi, who had to return home to the coast,
0:27:27 > 0:27:30'and we were heading on into the desert with Rob Watt,
0:27:30 > 0:27:33'a security adviser, because of the threat of kidnap
0:27:33 > 0:27:35'by Islamic militants linked to Al-Qaeda.'
0:27:38 > 0:27:41So, Rob, how far have we got to go now?
0:27:41 > 0:27:46- Today, we're doing about 500km off-road.- All right.
0:27:46 > 0:27:48We'll be stopping for a couple of days
0:27:48 > 0:27:51and then about another 450 after that.
0:27:51 > 0:27:54So, from London to Aberdeen,
0:27:54 > 0:27:56without any roads.
0:27:56 > 0:27:57Put those in the front.
0:27:57 > 0:28:02A former Scotland Yard detective, Rob has a passion for Mauritania,
0:28:02 > 0:28:05and has worked here on and off for nearly 30 years.
0:28:09 > 0:28:13The reason we're racing is because we're hoping to get to a little
0:28:13 > 0:28:16village, a little community, it's almost just a dot on the map,
0:28:16 > 0:28:18in Western Sahara,
0:28:18 > 0:28:24where tomorrow they should be having Independence Day celebrations.
0:28:32 > 0:28:34Here we go.
0:28:34 > 0:28:41- We're now on dirt and dust for a few miles, hey, Rob?- Yeah.
0:28:41 > 0:28:44Yeah, no motorway service stations along here.
0:28:48 > 0:28:52'Few travellers enter this endless and lawless wilderness
0:28:52 > 0:28:56'where there are no roads and no border posts.
0:28:56 > 0:28:59'We were hoping to spend the night camping by one of the few
0:28:59 > 0:29:05'settlements in this emptiness, a place called Bir Morgrein.'
0:29:05 > 0:29:07So, we're making reasonably good progress
0:29:07 > 0:29:12and we're heading in this direction, so we're pretty much bang on course.
0:29:12 > 0:29:15- OK.- What we need to do tonight is, before it gets dark,
0:29:15 > 0:29:17we do not want to be camping out in this,
0:29:17 > 0:29:20because the wind blows from Libya, it goes straight across.
0:29:20 > 0:29:23We do not want to be camping out. So in about 45 minutes,
0:29:23 > 0:29:26we need to start really looking for somewhere to camp,
0:29:26 > 0:29:27somewhere a bit more sheltered.
0:29:37 > 0:29:40I think this is where we're going to stop for the night.
0:29:43 > 0:29:46'We hadn't got as far as we'd hoped, but it was getting dark
0:29:46 > 0:29:47'and we had to stop,
0:29:47 > 0:29:51'taking what shelter we could from some acacia trees.'
0:29:53 > 0:29:57I'm not convinced this is going to work.
0:29:57 > 0:30:02Genius, genius! All right, take it all back, it's a brilliant idea.
0:30:02 > 0:30:06'Kadi, our most experienced driver, took charge of setting up camp.'
0:30:06 > 0:30:08Kadi, is this for fire?
0:30:08 > 0:30:09Yes, yes, fire is.
0:30:09 > 0:30:11Excellent.
0:30:28 > 0:30:31Hot embers in the sand cooked the bread.
0:30:44 > 0:30:47Wow, look, it's really hot, baking hot.
0:30:48 > 0:30:50Straight out of the sand.
0:30:50 > 0:30:51Oh!
0:30:53 > 0:30:55Kadi, it's fantastic.
0:30:57 > 0:31:01'And then, suddenly, a Tuareg nomad emerged from the darkness,
0:31:01 > 0:31:04'drawn to our camp by the glow of our fire.
0:31:04 > 0:31:08'The nomadic code in the barren desert is to share whatever food
0:31:08 > 0:31:11'you have with passing strangers.'
0:31:16 > 0:31:18ENGINE TURNS OVER
0:31:24 > 0:31:27'We left before sunrise, and headed towards Western Sahara
0:31:27 > 0:31:32'to meet up with the Polisario, the Saharawi independence movement.'
0:31:36 > 0:31:39A rollercoaster ride, this one.
0:31:41 > 0:31:46And there's the road, there's a track over there.
0:31:46 > 0:31:49'There are no formal marks for the border between northern Mauritania
0:31:49 > 0:31:51'and this part of Western Sahara,
0:31:51 > 0:31:57'but we were told the root we were taking hadn't been travelled by westerners for decades.
0:31:59 > 0:32:04'Finally, we arrived at a Polisario military base in the middle of the desert.'
0:32:13 > 0:32:15HE SHOUTS COMMANDS
0:32:21 > 0:32:24When the Spanish left Western Sahara in 1975,
0:32:24 > 0:32:28Moroccan troops flooded in, claiming the territory as theirs.
0:32:28 > 0:32:33The Polisario, formed from the local Saharawi tribes, resisted,
0:32:33 > 0:32:35and declared an independent republic.
0:32:37 > 0:32:39A brutal war ensued,
0:32:39 > 0:32:44until a UN-sponsored ceasefire was declared in 1991.
0:32:44 > 0:32:48There's been sporadic fighting since, and the Polisario say
0:32:48 > 0:32:52they maintain a standing army here of more than 20,000 soldiers.
0:32:55 > 0:32:58There's no formal rank in the Polisario army,
0:32:58 > 0:33:01but Fadely Larossi is the equivalent of a colonel.
0:33:03 > 0:33:06Where did you grow up, where were you born?
0:33:06 > 0:33:08I born in Laayoune.
0:33:08 > 0:33:12In Laayoune, occupied today by Morocco, yeah?
0:33:12 > 0:33:15That is in 1954.
0:33:18 > 0:33:21I went to Madrid for the university there.
0:33:21 > 0:33:24- Oh, right.- Yes.
0:33:24 > 0:33:30I was obliged to join the Polisario for fighting because,
0:33:30 > 0:33:35at that time Morocco enter, and I sacrifice my study.
0:33:35 > 0:33:38- You wanted to fight? - By that time you are very young,
0:33:38 > 0:33:42so we want to fight and so I chose the army.
0:33:42 > 0:33:45But very good also.
0:33:52 > 0:33:56We travelled with Fadely back to the refugee camps at Tindouf
0:33:56 > 0:33:58in neighbouring Algeria, where he lives
0:33:58 > 0:34:01with thousands of other Saharawis.
0:34:02 > 0:34:07Our route took us close to the sand and stone fortified wall
0:34:07 > 0:34:10built by Morocco that divides Western Sahara in two.
0:34:11 > 0:34:14It also divides many Saharawi families,
0:34:14 > 0:34:17caught on opposite sides of it after the war.
0:34:19 > 0:34:23'The Moroccans have spent years building these fortifications,
0:34:23 > 0:34:29'1,700 miles long, which snake across the empty desert.
0:34:29 > 0:34:33'The wall is manned by around 120,000 Moroccan troops,
0:34:33 > 0:34:36'defending territory which they claim is their own province.
0:34:36 > 0:34:40'The area along the wall has been turned into the most heavily
0:34:40 > 0:34:43'landmined region of the planet, so we couldn't get too close.'
0:34:43 > 0:34:48So, Fadely, this is the Berm, just along the horizon?
0:34:48 > 0:34:54Yeah. This is the Berm, the Shame Berm.
0:34:54 > 0:34:55HE CHUCKLES
0:34:55 > 0:34:58Why do you call this the Berm Of Shame?
0:34:58 > 0:35:05Is dividing families, one family you will find some son there,
0:35:05 > 0:35:08some daughter here, some mother there, father here.
0:35:08 > 0:35:14In my case, for example, since 1975, I never have seen my father,
0:35:14 > 0:35:18my daughter...my brother, my sister,
0:35:18 > 0:35:22all of them, until 2005, for five days.
0:35:23 > 0:35:26Under a special United Nations programme,
0:35:26 > 0:35:28Fadely was flown to the other side of the wall
0:35:28 > 0:35:33for a brief meeting with his father, who he hadn't seen for 30 years.
0:35:35 > 0:35:39- How old is your father now? - Very old man, very old man.
0:35:39 > 0:35:43What are the chances that the wall is going to come down
0:35:43 > 0:35:46and that you'll get to see him again?
0:35:46 > 0:35:49I don't know, this is...
0:35:49 > 0:35:51this is my destiny, you know.
0:35:52 > 0:35:56It's very difficult for him and for me,
0:35:56 > 0:35:59but this is our destiny, we cannot, you can't imagine.
0:35:59 > 0:36:02This is...in my case, there are plenty of Saharawi the same thing.
0:36:07 > 0:36:12Hours more driving took us across the border into southern Algeria,
0:36:12 > 0:36:17to the refugee camps in Tindouf where Saharawis fled after the war.
0:36:19 > 0:36:24More than 100,000 displaced Saharawis live in these camps.
0:36:24 > 0:36:28Morocco says they could return to Western Sahara at any time.
0:36:30 > 0:36:34But these refugees are fearful of what would happen to them under Moroccan rule.
0:36:47 > 0:36:50The following evening, Fadely invited us to meet his wife
0:36:50 > 0:36:52and children at his home in the camp.
0:36:55 > 0:36:58Fadely! Hello, mate.
0:36:58 > 0:37:00- Hello.- How are you?
0:37:00 > 0:37:02Very well.
0:37:02 > 0:37:05Lovely to see you. Thank you for inviting us over.
0:37:05 > 0:37:08Very well, I am glad and happy to see you at my home.
0:37:08 > 0:37:10Come in, please.
0:37:10 > 0:37:14When they grow up, do you think they're going to grow up here
0:37:14 > 0:37:18or do you think they'll be, when they are adults, do you think they'll grow up in...
0:37:18 > 0:37:20- I hope, I hope... - ..in Western Sahara?
0:37:20 > 0:37:25I hope, I hope, as all of the wish of all the Saharawi,
0:37:25 > 0:37:27to be growing in his homeland.
0:37:27 > 0:37:31Now is six year here in the exile,
0:37:31 > 0:37:35so I want the rest of his life to be in his homeland.
0:37:35 > 0:37:42My children and I, their grandfather is in Laayoune, all of their family
0:37:42 > 0:37:46there, because in the exile are just me and my sister.
0:37:46 > 0:37:52So, my son and my daughter, all of them they are very interested
0:37:52 > 0:37:56to one day to see their grandfather or their uncles.
0:37:56 > 0:37:58They never has seen them.
0:38:00 > 0:38:03But there's little sign of a solution here.
0:38:03 > 0:38:06Morocco has offered a degree of autonomy to Western Sahara,
0:38:06 > 0:38:09but the Polisario want full independence.
0:38:09 > 0:38:13Without more help from the outside world, I wonder
0:38:13 > 0:38:16whether Fadely will ever be reunited with the rest of his family.
0:38:18 > 0:38:24'After a week in the desert, it was time to continue my journey along the Tropic of Cancer.
0:38:24 > 0:38:28'That meant catching an internal flight across Algeria.'
0:38:28 > 0:38:32Algeria's about five times the size of France.
0:38:32 > 0:38:37We're going to fly over part of it now and get back on the Tropic of Cancer.
0:38:37 > 0:38:40But our flight is at three o'clock in the morning.
0:38:40 > 0:38:42Apparently, it's because the Algerian government
0:38:42 > 0:38:45doesn't want people flying during daylight hours,
0:38:45 > 0:38:49so they don't see secret military installations on the ground.
0:38:49 > 0:38:52Very odd.
0:38:55 > 0:38:56I was heading for Tamanrasset,
0:38:56 > 0:38:59an ancient city on the edge of the Sahara desert.
0:39:03 > 0:39:06'We finally arrived at five in the morning.'
0:39:06 > 0:39:09OK, we're off again.
0:39:09 > 0:39:13'During the 1990s, tens of thousands of people died in Algeria
0:39:13 > 0:39:17'during a bloody civil war between the army and Islamic militants.
0:39:17 > 0:39:21'The war's now over, but there's still a threat from suicide bombers
0:39:21 > 0:39:26'linked to Al-Qaeda and, as foreigners, we were given a police escort from the airport.'
0:39:30 > 0:39:32But Tamanrasset seemed peaceful enough.
0:39:32 > 0:39:37The city is a crossroads in the desert and, for centuries, it's been
0:39:37 > 0:39:41an important trading post for the nomadic Tuareg people of the Sahara.
0:39:41 > 0:39:44'Said Chitour was going to be my guide in Algeria.'
0:39:47 > 0:39:49- So, Said...- Yes?
0:39:49 > 0:39:51Where have you brought us today?
0:39:51 > 0:39:53To the camel market.
0:39:53 > 0:39:57And this is the biggest one in the area, in the region.
0:39:57 > 0:40:01It's a junction in the middle of the desert, middle of nowhere, really,
0:40:01 > 0:40:03it's the middle of the Sahara.
0:40:03 > 0:40:08And it's the place where basically there is a big transaction going on and trades of the camels.
0:40:09 > 0:40:11And here they are. Bloody hell, look at how many!
0:40:11 > 0:40:19'Said took me to meet Brahim Yaya, one of the most successful Tuareg camel dealers in the Sahara.'
0:40:19 > 0:40:22Oh. Oh, I don't like it when camels look at us.
0:40:22 > 0:40:27Brahim, can we ask you, you're a camel breeder and a camel trader?
0:40:27 > 0:40:28Is that correct?
0:40:28 > 0:40:30- TRANSLATION: - I have several hundred camels,
0:40:30 > 0:40:33I'm one of the biggest breeders in Algeria.
0:40:33 > 0:40:35So that makes you a very rich man?
0:40:37 > 0:40:40Yes, yes. Because, for nomads all around the world,
0:40:40 > 0:40:44wealth is not about owning banks or aeroplanes.
0:40:49 > 0:40:52It's about having camels, livestock.
0:40:54 > 0:40:55Ooh.
0:40:55 > 0:40:57Ooh-ooh!
0:40:57 > 0:41:01But you're a city man, you're not particularly happy around camels?
0:41:01 > 0:41:03Yeah, you don't know how the reaction.
0:41:03 > 0:41:05THEY SPEAK IN FRENCH
0:41:08 > 0:41:10He needs to have big balls!
0:41:12 > 0:41:16Can we ask you about this camel, what do you think about this one?
0:41:16 > 0:41:18Good for breeding? Good for buying?
0:41:18 > 0:41:20THEY SPEAK IN FRENCH
0:41:22 > 0:41:25Yeah. He's not old.
0:41:25 > 0:41:26Ooh.
0:41:26 > 0:41:29- MAN SPEAKS IN FRENCH TRANSLATION:- He's five.
0:41:31 > 0:41:34When he was four, he only had two teeth.
0:41:34 > 0:41:36And when he's six, he'll have six.
0:41:36 > 0:41:41So come on, Brahim, are you tempted by this fine beast here, are you tempted to buy this one?
0:41:44 > 0:41:47If you buy it for me I will accept. THEY LAUGH
0:41:49 > 0:41:51In the age of the four-wheel drive,
0:41:51 > 0:41:54camels aren't used a great deal as transport any more.
0:41:54 > 0:41:57Most of these animals will be killed for their meat,
0:41:57 > 0:41:59which is eaten across much of North Africa.
0:42:01 > 0:42:04While camel caravans are now rare here,
0:42:04 > 0:42:08Tamanrasset remains an important crossroads for other travellers
0:42:08 > 0:42:10on an extraordinary journey out of the Tropics.
0:42:10 > 0:42:14There's a lot of African faces on the streets of this town,
0:42:14 > 0:42:19and they're mainly illegal immigrants from sub-Saharan Africa,
0:42:19 > 0:42:24who are travelling north through Algeria, trying to get to Europe.
0:42:25 > 0:42:27Up to 30,000 African migrants
0:42:27 > 0:42:30are said to be in Tamanrasset at any one time.
0:42:30 > 0:42:33Many of them have literally walked hundreds of miles across
0:42:33 > 0:42:35the Sahara desert to get here.
0:42:35 > 0:42:38But we couldn't stop to talk to them because we'd been warned
0:42:38 > 0:42:40they would be arrested.
0:42:44 > 0:42:46It's quite an extraordinary story, actually,
0:42:46 > 0:42:50because, what they go through, what these guys, and they are mainly men,
0:42:50 > 0:42:53go through on their journey, the suffering, the harassment,
0:42:53 > 0:42:56they cross deserts, they cross mountains,
0:42:56 > 0:42:59they're constantly facing the threat of arrest.
0:42:59 > 0:43:02And they're aiming to reach the promised land, Europe,
0:43:02 > 0:43:05the land of jobs and employment.
0:43:10 > 0:43:12'Our next stop along the Tropic
0:43:12 > 0:43:15'was the beautiful Algerian oasis town of Djanet.
0:43:18 > 0:43:20'This used to be a tourist gateway
0:43:20 > 0:43:22'for adventure holidays in the Sahara.'
0:43:22 > 0:43:26- Yeah, Djanet. - What does Djanet mean?- Paradise.
0:43:26 > 0:43:27Jannat, from janna. Djanet.
0:43:27 > 0:43:30So the actual name of the town means paradise?
0:43:30 > 0:43:32Yeah. Paradise in Arabic.
0:43:32 > 0:43:36'Said worked as a tour guide until 1992.
0:43:36 > 0:43:40'But, when the civil war began, the tourists stopped coming.
0:43:40 > 0:43:42'Said retrained as a journalist,
0:43:42 > 0:43:46'assisting foreign correspondents who came to report on the conflict
0:43:46 > 0:43:49'and the terrorism that still blights this country.'
0:43:54 > 0:43:59Said, Algeria has a bit of an image problem, I think, doesn't it?
0:43:59 > 0:44:03There's been another suicide bombing just in the last few days.
0:44:03 > 0:44:07What is the security situation like at the moment here?
0:44:07 > 0:44:11If I compare the situation, security situation today,
0:44:11 > 0:44:15and yesterday which is during the last decades, black decades,
0:44:15 > 0:44:18it was really, really seriously dangerous to come to Algeria.
0:44:18 > 0:44:21- Tens of thousands have died here, haven't they?- 200,000.
0:44:21 > 0:44:23200,000 people.
0:44:23 > 0:44:25That's quite extraordinary.
0:44:25 > 0:44:26Yeah, Algerian people suffer.
0:44:26 > 0:44:30You couldn't imagine how the Algerian people suffer from terror.
0:44:30 > 0:44:34Nobody knows how Algerian, our people suffer here.
0:44:34 > 0:44:38Mens and womens been innocent people, killed,
0:44:38 > 0:44:41slaughtered, kidnapped, raped.
0:44:41 > 0:44:42It was awful.
0:44:42 > 0:44:46And do you think life is getting better in Algeria?
0:44:46 > 0:44:51Can you imagine a day when you'll be able to stop hanging out with
0:44:51 > 0:44:55journalists or TV crews like us, and you'll be able to go back to your old love
0:44:55 > 0:44:57which was hanging out with tour groups
0:44:57 > 0:45:01and taking people out to see the wildlife and nature of Algeria?
0:45:01 > 0:45:02I dream really about it,
0:45:02 > 0:45:06because I wish that one day the peace come back
0:45:06 > 0:45:10totally in my country, and no more attacks, no more suicide bombers.
0:45:10 > 0:45:12And then the people will live normally
0:45:12 > 0:45:14as anybody around the world.
0:45:15 > 0:45:18From Algeria, my root east took me towards another country
0:45:18 > 0:45:22with a tarnished international image - Libya.
0:45:22 > 0:45:26It was just a few hours' drive through some truly stunning scenery.
0:45:33 > 0:45:36Relations between Libya and Algeria have long been tense,
0:45:36 > 0:45:40and this border has been closed to foreigners for decades.
0:45:40 > 0:45:42But, after endless negotiations,
0:45:42 > 0:45:46the Libyan authorities had agreed to let us through.
0:45:46 > 0:45:49Just a couple more hours of paperwork, and we were across, and
0:45:49 > 0:45:53aiming for the Libyan town of Ghat, just north of the Tropic of Cancer.
0:45:53 > 0:45:55First impressions were very positive.
0:45:55 > 0:45:58Hello, my friend. Welcome to Libya.
0:46:00 > 0:46:02Libya is very nice country.
0:46:03 > 0:46:06Do you think we're going to have a good time here?
0:46:06 > 0:46:08- Inshallah.- Inshallah.- Inshallah.
0:46:22 > 0:46:24Oh. Ah.
0:46:25 > 0:46:27And we've arrived.
0:46:27 > 0:46:29This is Libya.
0:46:29 > 0:46:33This is the Acacous Tourist Hotel.
0:46:34 > 0:46:39The gentleman behind me, though, is our government minder.
0:46:39 > 0:46:41He looks like a mini Colonel Gaddafi.
0:46:42 > 0:46:45Anyway, this is where we're staying tonight,
0:46:45 > 0:46:47and then we start heading east.
0:46:47 > 0:46:49DOOR BELL RINGS
0:46:49 > 0:46:52Bloody hell. Broken the bloody door.
0:46:54 > 0:46:59Look, well, if there's any doubt about where we are, the man himself.
0:46:59 > 0:47:01I'll just fix the door.
0:47:04 > 0:47:08'With guides and drivers, we'd picked up quite an entourage.'
0:47:08 > 0:47:09Very lucky.
0:47:09 > 0:47:13This is Mr Tariq, who's travelling with us.
0:47:13 > 0:47:15Mr Tariq is the money man.
0:47:15 > 0:47:17And look how much money he's got.
0:47:19 > 0:47:22HE LAUGHS
0:47:22 > 0:47:24Ten dinara.
0:47:24 > 0:47:26Ten dinara.
0:47:26 > 0:47:28That's how much I get.
0:47:28 > 0:47:31- Seven dollar.- Seven dollars?
0:47:31 > 0:47:33Mr Ahmed's getting out more money.
0:47:33 > 0:47:36Five dinars. And on that there's just a camel.
0:47:36 > 0:47:37Camel, yeah.
0:47:39 > 0:47:41Well, thank you very much.
0:47:41 > 0:47:43Come on.
0:47:45 > 0:47:48South west Libya has some of the most beautiful desert
0:47:48 > 0:47:50in the entire Sahara.
0:47:51 > 0:47:53It was time to head off-road.
0:48:18 > 0:48:21And there was one place we just had to visit.
0:48:37 > 0:48:40This is extraordinary.
0:48:42 > 0:48:46This is like something from a dream almost. A lake in the desert.
0:48:48 > 0:48:50You'd think you'd found paradise.
0:48:54 > 0:48:56Maybe you have.
0:48:57 > 0:49:01Even though it's a bone-dry ocean of sand,
0:49:01 > 0:49:06there are vast reserves of water deep beneath parts of the Sahara.
0:49:06 > 0:49:11Here, the water table reaches the surface to form an oasis,
0:49:11 > 0:49:12the Ubari Lakes.
0:49:12 > 0:49:16The water's salty and buoyant, like the Dead Sea.
0:49:16 > 0:49:18- Can I ask you?- Ah, yes.
0:49:18 > 0:49:21Has anybody told you that you look like Colonel Gaddafi?
0:49:21 > 0:49:23Ah. Er.
0:49:23 > 0:49:28- My, my grandfather before... - Back.
0:49:28 > 0:49:31OK, back. Yes, yes, in Mecca, in Mecca.
0:49:31 > 0:49:36- In Mecca?- Yes. My grandfather and grandfather Gaddafi.
0:49:36 > 0:49:38- They were?- Brothers.- Brothers?- Yes.
0:49:38 > 0:49:41- Before.- So not only do you look like Colonel Gaddafi,
0:49:41 > 0:49:44but you are related to Colonel Gaddafi.
0:49:44 > 0:49:46Gaddafi. And we're going to go swimming together.
0:49:46 > 0:49:48Swim's easy, very easy, Gaddafi.
0:49:48 > 0:49:51- It's very easy?- Yeah, I am, I'm Gaddafi same same in Libya.
0:49:51 > 0:49:55- Same same.- Yes, yes.- Same same, but different?- Yeah, not, not different.
0:49:55 > 0:49:59- Not different?- Yes, I am Libyan, I am Gaddafi Libya. No problem.
0:50:06 > 0:50:09- Is good. Excuse me. - It's good, but it's cold.
0:50:09 > 0:50:10Yes.
0:50:10 > 0:50:12Any crocodiles here? Snakes?
0:50:12 > 0:50:15No, no, no, no, no, no, no.
0:50:15 > 0:50:17No, no, no, no, no? Are you sure?
0:50:17 > 0:50:19Yeah, very nice. In this.
0:50:19 > 0:50:21- Yes.- Looks amazing.
0:50:21 > 0:50:24Swim, swim, my friend. Swim.
0:50:24 > 0:50:28- All right, whoa. - It's all salty here.
0:50:28 > 0:50:32- Sahara water, oh, my God, it's good country.- Good country?
0:50:32 > 0:50:36Yes. Sun and water,
0:50:36 > 0:50:39and Sahara.
0:50:39 > 0:50:42And my friend, good friend.
0:50:42 > 0:50:43Thank you, my God.
0:50:48 > 0:50:52My journey through the Tropics takes me across the region of the planet
0:50:52 > 0:50:56already bearing the brunt of global climate change.
0:50:56 > 0:51:00Even out here, in the middle of the world's largest desert,
0:51:00 > 0:51:02there's worrying evidence
0:51:02 > 0:51:05of how humans are affecting the environment.
0:51:05 > 0:51:08Some of the Ubari Lakes have mysteriously dried up.
0:51:13 > 0:51:18Opinion seems to be divided about what's happened here.
0:51:18 > 0:51:24Some scientists blame this on global climate change,
0:51:24 > 0:51:28while others say that it's the result of farmers in this area
0:51:28 > 0:51:34overusing the water supply from the ground water, so the pool of water
0:51:34 > 0:51:39that exists deep underneath the ground across this entire area,
0:51:39 > 0:51:41but, either way,
0:51:41 > 0:51:43the result is a dead lake.
0:51:45 > 0:51:48Water has always been one of the biggest issues
0:51:48 > 0:51:51for the countries of North Africa that straddle the Sahara.
0:51:51 > 0:51:55But the parched desert holds many surprises, as I would discover
0:51:55 > 0:51:59as my journey took me on to the far south east of Libya,
0:51:59 > 0:52:02and the biggest water project on Earth.
0:52:02 > 0:52:06On the way, we passed through the city of Sabha.
0:52:06 > 0:52:07It's only real claim to fame
0:52:07 > 0:52:11is that it's where Colonel Gaddafi went to school.
0:52:11 > 0:52:12Propped up by oil money,
0:52:12 > 0:52:16he's ruled this country with an iron grip for more than 40 years.
0:52:16 > 0:52:21Surly or smiling, in Libya you can't escape his domineering presence.
0:52:26 > 0:52:29Apparently, this is the hut
0:52:29 > 0:52:33where Colonel Gaddafi used to live
0:52:33 > 0:52:35when he was a student in the city.
0:52:35 > 0:52:38And they've immortalised it
0:52:38 > 0:52:41here on a roundabout in the middle of the city.
0:52:43 > 0:52:45Let's have a look inside.
0:52:48 > 0:52:52Well, it's a simple little hut, as you can see.
0:52:52 > 0:52:56But they've got a visitors' book here.
0:52:56 > 0:52:59Just checking through it.
0:53:03 > 0:53:06There's an entry here from somebody,
0:53:06 > 0:53:09"Thank you very much for the visit to the historical place,
0:53:09 > 0:53:13"and the opportunity to hear of the early life of Colonel Gaddafi.
0:53:13 > 0:53:18"It is greatly appreciated." Robin Seeley, I think that looks like.
0:53:18 > 0:53:21General? General Robin Seeley?
0:53:21 > 0:53:25British Prime Minister's representative for defence and security matters.
0:53:25 > 0:53:30Blimey. It's interesting, though, that he's been here,
0:53:30 > 0:53:32because, in the last few years,
0:53:32 > 0:53:35Libya's really been brought in from the cold.
0:53:37 > 0:53:39Tony Blair came here,
0:53:39 > 0:53:41lucky Libyans, as a reward for them
0:53:41 > 0:53:46changing some of their policies on nuclear matters.
0:53:49 > 0:53:51Ahmed? Can you call...
0:53:51 > 0:53:52AHMED LAUGHS
0:53:52 > 0:53:53Can you call the Colonel?
0:53:53 > 0:53:57- No.- We need to get him on the phone.
0:53:57 > 0:53:58No.
0:53:58 > 0:54:01Can you call the Colonel?
0:54:01 > 0:54:04Not telephone, but...
0:54:04 > 0:54:05No?
0:54:05 > 0:54:07- It doesn't work.- Yes.
0:54:09 > 0:54:12With endless desert stretching ahead of us,
0:54:12 > 0:54:15we decided to enlist some help.
0:54:15 > 0:54:21So we're heading south and east from here to a place called Al Kufra.
0:54:21 > 0:54:26But, if we were to try and go overland, we wouldn't make it or it would take us months
0:54:26 > 0:54:29because there's a giant sand sea between us and our destination.
0:54:29 > 0:54:32So, instead, we're going to get a bit of help
0:54:32 > 0:54:34and we're going to hop some of the way.
0:54:51 > 0:54:55Our last stop on this leg would be the remote town of Al Kufra,
0:54:55 > 0:54:57close to the border with Egypt.
0:55:02 > 0:55:05'We headed straight back out into the desert.'
0:55:08 > 0:55:12Looking around, it looks as though there's absolutely nothing here.
0:55:13 > 0:55:16It's dry and it's arid.
0:55:16 > 0:55:19But there's water out here.
0:55:25 > 0:55:27My God, look at this!
0:55:28 > 0:55:30What a sight.
0:55:34 > 0:55:36The Great Man-made River Project
0:55:36 > 0:55:39is one of the biggest engineering schemes ever undertaken.
0:55:39 > 0:55:41It's described by Colonel Gaddafi
0:55:41 > 0:55:46as the eighth wonder of the world and, for once, he might be right.
0:55:47 > 0:55:52Water was first discovered beneath the desert in Al Kufra in the 1970s.
0:55:52 > 0:55:54In the years since, the Libyans have begun building
0:55:54 > 0:55:57a vast network of pipes across the desert.
0:55:57 > 0:55:59When it's finished, this part of the project will pump
0:55:59 > 0:56:03more than one billion gallons of water a day from aquifers,
0:56:03 > 0:56:06vast underground lakes deep beneath the desert,
0:56:06 > 0:56:09to Libya's growing coastal cities.
0:56:15 > 0:56:18'The scale of this project is breathtaking.'
0:56:19 > 0:56:23How much does each section of pipe weigh?
0:56:23 > 0:56:25The weight of the pipe, 80 tonnes.
0:56:25 > 0:56:27- 80 tonnes?- Yes.
0:56:27 > 0:56:30That's quite extraordinary to see,
0:56:30 > 0:56:34because everything about this project is huge. It's colossal.
0:56:34 > 0:56:38The number of pipes, the size of the sections,
0:56:38 > 0:56:42the amount of water it will take, the length of the trench
0:56:42 > 0:56:46and the length of the pipeline. It's extraordinary.
0:56:49 > 0:56:52'They're working around clock here, but it will still take them
0:56:52 > 0:56:56'another three years to complete this section of the pipeline.'
0:57:03 > 0:57:05That's precision work, look at that.
0:57:10 > 0:57:13Just imagine this, filled with water,
0:57:13 > 0:57:17flowing that-a-way towards the cities on the coast.
0:57:17 > 0:57:24This is just one branch of the Great Man-made River Pipeline Project.
0:57:24 > 0:57:27And when it's all completed and connected up, the flow of water
0:57:27 > 0:57:30heading towards the sea, heading towards the coast,
0:57:30 > 0:57:33will be equivalent to the flow of the River Thames.
0:57:33 > 0:57:35It's extraordinary.
0:57:38 > 0:57:41For all the justifiable criticism of Gadaffi's dictatorship,
0:57:41 > 0:57:46the country's oil wealth hasn't been completely wasted.
0:57:46 > 0:57:48Libyans are the wealthiest in Africa.
0:57:48 > 0:57:50And this grand water project
0:57:50 > 0:57:55is likely to be a huge benefit to this country for decades to come.
0:57:59 > 0:58:03We've travelled from the Atlantic coast to here in south east Libya.
0:58:03 > 0:58:06It's been a long, hard, but amazing trip.
0:58:06 > 0:58:10East from here, that-a-way, is Egypt, and that'll be my next stop
0:58:10 > 0:58:15when I'll be travelling from the River Nile to mysterious Oman.
0:58:16 > 0:58:19'Next time, among the treasures of southern Egypt,
0:58:19 > 0:58:22'I share a meal with some local Bedouin boys.'
0:58:22 > 0:58:23Bloody hell!
0:58:23 > 0:58:28I'm amazed they didn't get the bit that's in my mouth!
0:58:30 > 0:58:33'From the underwater marvels of the Red Sea,
0:58:33 > 0:58:36'I cross Saudi Arabia to Dubai.'
0:58:36 > 0:58:39They're building the tallest building in the world.
0:58:39 > 0:58:44'And head on to meet the wildlife on the edge of the Arabian peninsula.'