20 Facts About Rizwan Khan

Rizwan Ahmed Khan better known as "Riz" Khan, is a British broadcaster currently working as a presenter for Al Arabiya English.

Rizwan Khan first rose to prominence while working for the BBC and CNN.

Riz Khan was born on 1 April 1962 in the British colony of Aden.

Rizwan Khan's father was a Pakistani-Punjabi born in Amritsar, India, under British rule, whose family moved to Lahore during the Partition.

Rizwan Khan's mother was born in Mukalla, in British-controlled Yemen, but her family roots go back to Kathiawar, Gujarat, in India.

At the age of four, Rizwan Khan moved with his family to London, during the Aden Emergency, an armed civil conflict that saw the end of British rule in Aden.

Rizwan Khan's parents divorced when he was six and he was estranged from his father from the age of 21.

Rizwan Khan graduated with a Bachelor of Science with Honours in Medical Physiology from the University of Wales in Cardiff in 1984, and then took a postgraduate course in Radio Journalism at Highbury College near Portsmouth before beginning his career in BBC local radio in 1985.

Rizwan Khan has been identified as the first mainstream BBC and CNN newscaster of South Asian origin.

Rizwan Khan progressed to jobs as a BBC writer, producer and reporter, working in both television and radio, and later became one of the founding News Presenters on BBC World Service Television News.

Rizwan Khan was recruited to join CNN in May 1993, as the American channel prepared to launch CNN International as a sister network to its US channel.

At CNN-I, Rizwan Khan became a senior anchor and reporter for the network's global news shows, covering events that included the 1996 and 1999 coverage of elections in India; the 1997 historic election in Britain; and in April 1998 the unprecedented live coverage from the Muslim pilgrimage, the Hajj, in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.

Rizwan Khan secured the world exclusive interview with Pakistan's General Pervez Musharraf following his coup in October 1999.

In 2004, Rizwan Khan was approached to help launch an English-language channel for the Al Jazeera Network whose headquarters are based in Doha, Qatar.

Rizwan Khan began recruiting for it prior to its launch in November 2006 and conducted his shows primarily from Washington, DC.

From 2006 until April 2011, Rizwan Khan had his own eponymous Programme on Al Jazeera English, in which he interviewed top global figures and celebrities, as well as analysts and policymakers to discuss leading news topics.

The Riz Rizwan Khan show invited viewers to interact with his guests via phone, email, and SMS texts.

In 2016, Rizwan Khan founded and launched a sustainable clothing brand that supports rhino conservation.

Rizwan Khan speaks Urdu and Hindi and has a basic understanding of some other South Asian languages such as Punjabi and Kutchi.

Rizwan Khan has studied French, and has some conversational Swedish.