22 Facts About Yalda Hakim

Yalda Hakim was born on 26 June 1983 and is an Australian broadcast journalist, Sky News Lead World News presenter, and documentary maker.

Yalda Hakim was one of the chief presenters at BBC News broadcasting in English in the UK and globally.

Yalda Hakim started her career at SBS Television, moving to BBC TV in 2012.

Yalda Hakim attended Macarthur Girls High School in Parramatta, Sydney, where she played the violin and became a sports captain and prefect.

Yalda Hakim went on to study for a Bachelor of Arts degree in Media from 2002 to 2004 at Macquarie University, where she was a board member of the Macquarie University Union.

In 2005, Yalda Hakim received a Diploma in Journalism at Macleay College, Sydney.

Yalda Hakim then went on to study a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism via distance education at Monash University from 2007 to 2009, in addition to a cadetship at the Special Broadcasting Service.

Besides English, Yalda Hakim is fluent in 5 languages; Dari, Urdu, Hindi, Farsi, and Pashto, and as of 2022 was learning Mandarin.

Yalda Hakim returned to Kabul for her first Dateline report in 2008, and from then reported from across the world for Dateline and SBS World News Australia.

Yalda Hakim was awarded the United Nations Association of Australia Media Peace Prize for best Australian Television News Coverage in 2009, and has been a finalist for the Walkley Young Australian Journalist of the Year Award.

In December 2012, it was announced that Yalda Hakim would join the BBC.

Yalda Hakim had been in talks with BBC executives since April 2012, after being approached at a broadcasting conference in Brisbane.

Yalda Hakim first appeared on BBC World News and the BBC News Channel in March 2013.

Yalda Hakim was nominated for a Peabody Award in 2021 for her writing and reporting contribution on Afghanistan: Documenting A Crucial Year.

On 8 September 2022, Yalda Hakim tweeted that Buckingham Palace had announced the death of Queen Elizabeth II 3 hours and 23 minutes before the formal announcement of her death.

Yalda Hakim later withdrew the tweet, which had been made 3 minutes before the official time of the monarch's death at 15:10.

In February 2023, it was announced Yalda Hakim would become a chief presenter on the BBC's new news channel for both UK and international viewers launched in April 2023.

Yalda Hakim presented The Daily Global for two hours every weekday, a show focused on a variety of international news.

Yalda Hakim presented her final programme for BBC News on 2 October 2023.

On 27 July 2023, Yalda Hakim tweeted that she was leaving the BBC.

The Yalda Hakim Foundation was established in 2018 to support the education of exceptionally talented young women from Afghanistan, through scholarships, internships, and mentoring.

In 2021 the Yalda Hakim Foundation partnered with Oriel College at Oxford University to provide a scholarship for a young Afghan woman, offering a fully-funded one-year masters degree course.