Shortly before Gareth Smyth left Beirut to head the Financial Times bureau in Tehran in 2003, he swung by the home of Rafik Hariri, Lebanon’s prime minister, to ask him about the move.
"In Beirut it takes only minutes and you know what is going on in the whole world," Hariri told the British-Irish journalist. "In Tehran you can live for decades and you cannot even know what is going on in your own street."
But Smyth, who died on January 15, aged 64, took the job in Tehran, adding the country to his portfolio of deeply reported journalism on everything from the music of Lebanese oud maestro Rabih Abou Khalil to the intricacies of Kurdish politics.
Jim Muir, the BBC’s Middle East correspondent, with whom Smyth shared an office in Tehran, said the reporter was “a staunch and wryly funny friend, as well as a journalist of insight and integrity”.
In 2005 he interviewed Iranian dissident Saeed Hajjarian. Known as the “brain of reformists,” Hajjarian was shot point-blank in the face in 2000, leaving him paralysed.
His attacker was jailed for just two years.
“I found him an engaging rather than a miserable man, sanguine about Iran’s prospects under [Iranian president Mahmoud] Ahmadinejad but just as eager to express his love of poetry and music,” Smyth later recalled.
Smyth cut his teeth in British journalism, writing for the New Statesman, The Scotsman and other publications. He once went to interview the Irish Republican Army commander Martin McGuinness who took Smyth fishing on the condition that the journalist did not reveal the location. A picture Smyth took of McGuinness holding a big fish hung in his Beirut apartment. Nearby was a photograph of Smyth’s Welsh mother Hilda, who died of cancer when he was 11. His father, Matthew, was Irish, from County Monaghan.
These Irish roots helped him bond with Iraqi-Kurdish guerrilla commanders, who now control the north of the country, as well as peaceful members of the Kurdish national movement in Iran, underdogs in a struggle for self-determination.
Among them was Iranian-Kurdish opposition leader Sadegh Sharafkandi, who was assassinated in Berlin with two other dissidents in 1992.
The killings, carried out by Iranian agents and Hezbollah operatives was named Operation Mykonos.
“Sharafkandi was just a lovely man,” Smyth once recalled, tearing up.
In 1996 Lebanese publisher Jamil Mrowa hired Smyth as a member of a veteran British team to relaunch The Daily Star in Beirut. The newspaper was started by Mr Mroueh’s father, the assassinated journalist Kamel Mroueh.
In Beirut, Smyth lived above Le Chef, one of the last old, family owned restaurants in the city. He ordered meat hummus with almost every meal, and calculated that it was cheaper to eat at Le Chef every day than to shop for ingredients.
Smyth graduated in politics, philosophy and economics from Queen's Church, Oxford, and was active in the Labour Party before becoming a journalist.
He had an acute understanding of political theory – of the brutal school of politics in his Irish fatherland and of the Middle East.
He covered the Israeli withdrawal from south Lebanon, the death of Syrian president Hafez Al Assad and the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq, when a car he was in overturned three times.
In the past decade he ghost-wrote the biography of Kuwaiti businessman Saad Al Barrak, who pioneered the mobile phone industry in the Middle East. Smyth also wrote for The Guardian, mainly on Iran.
He also contributed to other publications, including The National, where he mainly wrote pieces on literature.
Before he died, Smyth was about to finish another book he was writing in collaboration with prominent Lebanese law professor Chibli Mallat. This was to be on the humanist thought of Musa Al Sadr, the "vanished imam" who disappeared in Libya after a meeting with Muammar Qaddafi in 1978.
Smyth was a highly skilled and talented photographer. He was also a keen hiker who enjoyed taking his guests on tours of Iran, where they did lots of walking.
While asking for directions on a hike at a park in central Iran in 2007, Smyth was arrested on the grounds that foreign journalists needed permission to be there.
The British embassy in Tehran got him out after a four-day incarceration, in what he described as a "dry run" for negotiations the mission conducted following the arrest a few weeks later of 15 British Royal Navy personnel in waters separating Iraq from Iran.
Later, over lunch, an Iranian official asked Smyth if he was having any difficulty covering the country. He replied that nothing immediately came to mind.
His detention was not lost on the Iranian official, and Smyth was not sure whether the man was sending him an assuring message, a threat or both.
But he knew that to operate in Iran, subtlety had to be the mark of any good reporter.
Two weeks ago, Smyth was walking near his home in County Mayo on the west coast of Ireland when he suffered an apparent heart attack and died immediately, according to a friend who was with him.
Smyth is survived by three brothers, and his partner, the Lebanese journalist Zeinab Charafeddine, plus her son Nader Diab, a lawyer and senior policy officer at at an international charity in London.
The biog
Mission to Seafarers is one of the largest port-based welfare operators in the world.
It provided services to around 200 ports across 50 countries.
They also provide port chaplains to help them deliver professional welfare services.
'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
if you go
The flights
Etihad and Emirates fly direct from the UAE to Seoul from Dh3,775 return, including taxes
The package
Ski Safari offers a seven-night ski package to Korea, including five nights at the Dragon Valley Hotel in Yongpyong and two nights at Seoul CenterMark hotel, from £720 (Dh3,488) per person, including transfers, based on two travelling in January
The info
Visit www.gokorea.co.uk
Results
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 2,200m; Winner: Gurm, Antonio Fresu (jockey), Eric Lemartinel (trainer)
5.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Al Nafece, Al Muatasm Al Balushi, Mohammed Ramadan
6pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 1,200m; Winner: Ashton Tourettes, Adrie de Vries, Ibrahim Aseel
6.30pm: Arabian Triple Crown – Group 3 (PA) Dh300,000 (T) 2,200m; Winner: Ottoman, Adrie de Vries, Abdallah Al Hammadi
7pm: Liwa Oasis – Group 2 (PA) 300,000 (T) 1,400m; Winner: Hakeemat Muscat, Szczepan Mazur, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami
7.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh80,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Ganbaru, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi
McLaren GT specs
Engine: 4-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: seven-speed
Power: 620bhp
Torque: 630Nm
Price: Dh875,000
On sale: now
JUDAS AND THE BLACK MESSIAH
Directed by: Shaka King
Starring: Daniel Kaluuya, Lakeith Stanfield, Jesse Plemons
Four stars
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
'Tell the Machine Goodnight' by Katie Williams
Penguin Randomhouse
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 biog
Favourite book: Men are from Mars Women are from Venus
Favourite travel destination: Ooty, a hill station in South India
Hobbies: Cooking. Biryani, pepper crab are her signature dishes
Favourite place in UAE: Marjan Island
UAE v IRELAND
All matches start at 10am, and will be played in Abu Dhabi
1st ODI, Friday, January 8
2nd ODI, Sunday, January 10
3rd ODI, Tuesday, January 12
4th ODI, Thursday, January 14
Persuasion
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Dubai World Cup Carnival card:
6.30pm: Handicap (Turf) | US$175,000 | 2,410 metres
7.05pm: UAE 1000 Guineas Trial Conditions (Dirt) | $100,000 | 1,400m
7.40pm: Handicap (T) | $145,000 | 1,000m
8.15pm: Dubawi Stakes Group 3 (D) | $200,000 | 1,200m
8.50pm: Singspiel Stakes Group 3 (T) | $200,000 | 1,800m
9.25pm: Handicap (T) | $175,000 | 1,400m
BRIEF SCORES:
Toss: Nepal, chose to field
UAE 153-6: Shaiman (59), Usman (30); Regmi 2-23
Nepal 132-7: Jora 53 not out; Zahoor 2-17
Result: UAE won by 21 runs
Series: UAE lead 1-0
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Other key dates
-
Finals draw: December 2
-
Finals (including semi-finals and third-placed game): June 5–9, 2019
-
Euro 2020 play-off draw: November 22, 2019
-
Euro 2020 play-offs: March 26–31, 2020
THE BIO
Ms Al Ameri likes the variety of her job, and the daily environmental challenges she is presented with.
Regular contact with wildlife is the most appealing part of her role at the Environment Agency Abu Dhabi.
She loves to explore new destinations and lives by her motto of being a voice in the world, and not an echo.
She is the youngest of three children, and has a brother and sister.
Her favourite book, Moby Dick by Herman Melville helped inspire her towards a career exploring the natural world.
When Umm Kulthum performed in Abu Dhabi
Known as The Lady of Arabic Song, Umm Kulthum performed in Abu Dhabi on November 28, 1971, as part of celebrations for the fifth anniversary of the accession of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan as Ruler of Abu Dhabi. A concert hall was constructed for the event on land that is now Al Nahyan Stadium, behind Al Wahda Mall. The audience were treated to many of Kulthum's most well-known songs as part of the sold-out show, including Aghadan Alqak and Enta Omri.
A list of the animal rescue organisations in the UAE
Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
