Lynne covered the war in Afghanistan for The Australian newspaper, and in 2002 moved to Istanbul to cover events in the Middle East for the Irish Times. Istanbul provided a perfect jumping-off point for the Iraq war. From a base in the northern city of Irbil, Lynne covered the war's northern campaign, the aftermath of the occupation, and its implications for Iraq and, over the following years, for its neighbours. In the 1990s, Lynne spent around a decade specialising in coverage of China, living in Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong to report on the social, political and economic development of the country. She is currently based in Hong Kong where she is the Asian Features Editor for Agence France-Presse.