“I wasn’t prepared for below-freezing temperatures.”
Aida Khorami, 32, stands at the border between Iran and Turkey, wearing only running shoes.
“It’s extremely special here, with high mountains covered in snow – it’s bitterly cold, minus six degrees Celsius. I’m not dressed for this,” she said.
“Not today, either”
Khorami is the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation’s (NRK) newest correspondent, taking over the Middle East posting from Åse Marit Befring. Her arrival in the role coincided with a period of heightened international tension.
The timing is striking:
She began her new job on Sunday, March 1, the day after Israel and the United States launched strikes against Iran.
“I came home from a reporting trip in Syria around 1:30 a.m. On Friday. I put my suitcase down and went to bed. I woke up at 5:30 a.m., checked my phone, as I had been doing for weeks because we were expecting an attack. ‘Not today, either,’ I thought. Then I got up at 8:00 a.m., and the reports of the attack had just come in.”
Shortly after 7:00 a.m. That morning, the Israeli defense minister confirmed the strikes. Across Israel, air raid sirens sounded, warning of potential retaliatory attacks, even as explosions were reported in Tehran, Iran, according to Dagbladet.
No Base Yet
Khorami quickly went to NRK’s headquarters in Oslo.
“That’s when we started talking about deploying. It was almost as if I could reuse the suitcase from Syria. I just had to wash some clothes and then we traveled to Istanbul.”
“What did you pack?”
“I actually brought some thermal underwear because I acquire cold easily, and two down jackets that have come in handy. I’m wearing both of them now.”
The situation in Turkey is relatively calm, she reports.
“We are in constant communication,” she said of NRK, adding, “Everything is very day-to-day.”
Her base of operations remains uncertain.
“That hasn’t been finalized. It’s now very likely that it will be Istanbul. But everything is on hold. So, we’re taking it one day at a time.”
Khorami is traveling with NRK photographer Lokhman Ghorbani. Ghorbani is from Mahabad, Iran, while Khorami was born and raised in Norway to Iranian parents.
“It’s the Fear”
Poor connectivity is making it difficult to reach family members in Iran.
“It’s terrifying when you see messages on WhatsApp go from ‘delivered’ to just ‘sent,’ with only one checkmark, and you wonder how they are doing, if they are scared…”
“Are you afraid people will think you’re biased?”
“No, I haven’t received any feedback like that. I’m a journalist and I speak to everyone.”
Her parents in Norway are watching her reports on television, sending videos each time she appears on screen.
Ghorbani laughs and asks if Khorami wants coffee. They are at a gas station before continuing their reporting.
“It’s great to be two!”
“How did you end up at NRK?”
“I had just finished my master’s degree in political science, and there were some permanent positions available. I naturally thought I would get one – I clearly had a lot of confidence, thinking ‘I’ll get that one.’ It’s really funny to think about now.”
“I went to the interview, and they said I had an interesting profile, ‘but of course you won’t get the permanent job, but you can have a temporary assignment.’
She says she had a “fantastic boss” who gave her opportunities – and from there, things progressed with cultural news, politics, and foreign reporting in recent years.
“I always wanted to be a journalist or a diplomat. To travel around and meet people and see different places, and see how people are doing. But when I was little, I also dreamed of the classic: becoming a doctor. But I’m not comfortable with blood and wounds.”
A Conversation Awaited
She speaks Farsi, French, and Arabic, in addition to Norwegian and English.
“I can feel it now, when I try to talk to people, it definitely helps that you can speak their language. It gives a sense of security and closeness, it’s easier, it gives me a lot – and I can follow Iranian media and newspapers…”
The conversation is interrupted.
“What advice did Åse Marit Befring give you when you took over?”
“I was going to have a conversation with her, but I haven’t had time yet, because of everything that’s been happening. It’s been quite hectic. But I’ve been very well received by Yama Wolasmal, so it’s been so nice to have that collaboration and support. I’ve gotten a lot of advice from him. It’s invaluable.”
“What kind of advice have you received?”
“Everything and nothing, really. Everything from practical things like what to pack when you go to conflict zones, to everything professionally. We have a morning meeting together, and we’re in contact, dividing and planning.”
“It’s the Fear”
She has a long-distance relationship with her partner back in Oslo.
“Is this going to be a long-distance relationship?”
“We’re going to visit each other a lot and think it will be a few years of distance, but that it will work out. We started the relationship with long distance. Just a chapter in what we hope will be a long life.”
She carries a safety vest, helmet, and an IFAC – a small, portable kit for handling medical emergencies – in her suitcase.
“It’s an advanced first aid kit,” Khorami said.
“Not good for someone who doesn’t like blood?”
“Heheheheh. Oh dear. But it’s quiet here. I won’t need it, knock on wood.”
Five Quick Questions:
“When in your life have you come closest to dying?”
“Oh my! That’s a tough one. I was in a near-miss car accident on a road trip vacation in Italy, where a semi-truck swerved and pushed our car towards the guardrail. It was very scary. I don’t know what happened to the driver, whether he fell asleep or what. The driver just drove on. That was very strange.”
“When did you last cry?”
“Oh! Hmm. I saw a video of two sisters in Sudan, who were reunited after being separated, and the moment she sees her sister, she breaks down
