About 200 British-Iranian journalists are adjusting to a new normal in London after Iran International reopened its bureau following a seven-month hiatus due to security threats.
The network has returned to delivering rolling news coverage of events in Iran after it was forced to close its former office in Chiswick, west London and relocate some staff overseas.
Managers were in February told by British police they would have to stop broadcasting due to high-level threats from Tehran. It followed months of journalists working under armed police protection as part of a major anti-terrorism security operation.
The National has closely followed the Farsi-language TV station's journey from operating under threat to relocating its staff to Washington and returned to speak to employees at its new office.
The persistent threats from the Iranian authorities are evident upon arrival and everyone entering has to pass through several layers of high security.
Inside, reporters and editors work as in any other newsroom in the West: Donald Trump is on the television, colleagues share snacks at their desk and the kitchen is abuzz with chatter and laughter.
But all outsiders are banned from entering, except those whose presence is deemed essential, an element which has put a stop to the celebrations that were frequent in days gone by.
“We love a party but we love our security more,” spokesman Adam Baillie explained. “That’s been quite a restriction for us. It’s sounds flippant but it’s not. This is tight group of people, we’ve all worked together for a long time in special circumstances. No one can go home [to Iran]. It’s like a family here.”
'Being cautious doesn't mean being scared'
Niki Mahjoub, 44, is among the journalists who have had to readjust their lives after death threats from authorities in her homeland of Iran.
Having moved to the UK in 2009 she has been unable to return, which means she has had to miss out on family gatherings including her father’s funeral in 2012.
Her husband recently spotted a man sitting in a car outside their London home and because it appeared “something was not right” it was enough for them to alert police.
The man drove off and nothing happened but she continues to be extra vigilant.
“You need to be cautious but it does not mean you need to be scared,” she said. “These are two different things.”
The Iranian government has formally designated Iran International a terrorist organisation.
This means that employees are barred from owning property in Iran and inheriting assets.
Ms Mahjoub said this also means her life would be in danger if she ever set foot in her homeland again.
“If they decided to, they could hang me,” she said.
'Four hours to close the office down'
Mr Baillie opened up about how the Met Police's closure order sent shock waves through the newsroom.
“'Four hours to quit', they said," he recalled from his conversation with London's police. “We had to make phone calls to all the staff saying 'don’t come to work' and arrange work visas for those going to Washington.”
The force said, according to their intelligence, that Iranian authorities had directly threatened several members of Iran International’s staff.
The Met’s closure order sent staff rushing to secure work visas for journalists being sent to the bureau in Washington DC, while others were told to work from home.
For seven months the London team was splintered and delivered news to viewers inside and outside Iran on a hybrid model.
Iran International had been a thorn in the side of the Iranian government for years but gained more popularity after Mahsa Amini’s death in September 2022. The young Iranian died in custody after being arrested by the morality police for "not wearing her hijab correctly". Her death sparked the widest protest movement in the secluded nation for decades and Iran was condemned internationally for its heavy-handed response to the largely peaceful protests.
Aliasghar Ramezanpour, executive editor of the TV channel, appeared relaxed and upbeat as he laid out the challenges his team had to overcome in the past few months.
He cited courage, responsibility and an unwavering spirit of service to the Iranian people and diaspora as core values of staff who have refused to be cowed by threats from Tehran.
“The first thing was courage and a feeling of responsibility for our newsroom,” he explained. “Everyone was trying to do their best because the general conception here was that we should continue to work even if we are isolated in our homes, in different places.
“They could feel the demand and the requests from the people in Iran that they want them to continue what they are doing.
“So that was the main force behind having a hardworking newsroom.”
Mr Ramezanpour worked as a journalist in his native Iran and had a brief stint in government as deputy culture minister in the reformist administration of President Mohammad Khatami, who left office in 2005. After moving abroad and working for BBC Persian, the veteran journalist helped set up Iran International in 2017.
Employees are noticeably glad to be reunited and appear upbeat as they work at their desks.
But Mr Ramezanpour stressed their lives are far from normal.
“Our security [advice] says that it’s better to have less people here,” he said.
Despite the seriousness and continuity of the threats faced by staff, he insisted “everyone here is happy and we are excited to be back here”.
“Today is the first time that the IRGC [Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps] or Iran’s authorities want to stop the media but they can’t,” he said. “We are back to continue. I think it’s a big achievement for Iranian journalists, for media in the world, for independent free speech of media around the world.”
The candidates
Dr Ayham Ammora, scientist and business executive
Ali Azeem, business leader
Tony Booth, professor of education
Lord Browne, former BP chief executive
Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist
Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist
Dr Mark Mann, scientist
Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner
Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister
Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster
The specs
Engine: 3-litre twin-turbo V6
Power: 400hp
Torque: 475Nm
Transmission: 9-speed automatic
Price: From Dh215,900
On sale: Now
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How much sugar is in chocolate Easter eggs?
- The 169g Crunchie egg has 15.9g of sugar per 25g serving, working out at around 107g of sugar per egg
- The 190g Maltesers Teasers egg contains 58g of sugar per 100g for the egg and 19.6g of sugar in each of the two Teasers bars that come with it
- The 188g Smarties egg has 113g of sugar per egg and 22.8g in the tube of Smarties it contains
- The Milky Bar white chocolate Egg Hunt Pack contains eight eggs at 7.7g of sugar per egg
- The Cadbury Creme Egg contains 26g of sugar per 40g egg
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
Scores in brief:
Day 1
New Zealand (1st innings) 153 all out (66.3 overs) - Williamson 63, Nicholls 28, Yasir 3-54, Haris 2-11, Abbas 2-13, Hasan 2-38
Pakistan (1st innings) 59-2 (23 overs)
Most sought after workplace benefits in the UAE
- Flexible work arrangements
- Pension support
- Mental well-being assistance
- Insurance coverage for optical, dental, alternative medicine, cancer screening
- Financial well-being incentives
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
'Munich: The Edge of War'
Director: Christian Schwochow
Starring: George MacKay, Jannis Niewohner, Jeremy Irons
Rating: 3/5
Essentials
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct from the UAE to Geneva from Dh2,845 return, including taxes. The flight takes 6 hours.
The package
Clinique La Prairie offers a variety of programmes. A six-night Master Detox costs from 14,900 Swiss francs (Dh57,655), including all food, accommodation and a set schedule of medical consultations and spa treatments.
The view from The National
if you go
The flights
Fly to Rome with Etihad (www.etihad.ae) or Emirates (www.emirates.com) from Dh2,480 return including taxes. The flight takes six hours. Fly from Rome to Trapani with Ryanair (www.ryanair.com) from Dh420 return including taxes. The flight takes one hour 10 minutes.
The hotels
The author recommends the following hotels for this itinerary. In Trapani, Ai Lumi (www.ailumi.it); in Marsala, Viacolvento (www.viacolventomarsala.it); and in Marsala Del Vallo, the Meliaresort Dimore Storiche (www.meliaresort.it).
Director: Jon Favreau
Starring: Donald Glover, Seth Rogen, John Oliver
Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
Getting there
The flights
Flydubai operates up to seven flights a week to Helsinki. Return fares to Helsinki from Dubai start from Dh1,545 in Economy and Dh7,560 in Business Class.
The stay
Golden Crown Igloos in Levi offer stays from Dh1,215 per person per night for a superior igloo; www.leviniglut.net
Panorama Hotel in Levi is conveniently located at the top of Levi fell, a short walk from the gondola. Stays start from Dh292 per night based on two people sharing; www. golevi.fi/en/accommodation/hotel-levi-panorama
Arctic Treehouse Hotel in Rovaniemi offers stays from Dh1,379 per night based on two people sharing; www.arctictreehousehotel.com
Dhadak
Director: Shashank Khaitan
Starring: Janhvi Kapoor, Ishaan Khattar, Ashutosh Rana
Stars: 3
UAE%20v%20West%20Indies
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The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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