Kanbar Hossein-Bor becomes first UK high commissioner with refugee background

Kanbar Hossein-Bor makes history as UK’s first refugee-born high commissioner

From Iranian refugee to leading British diplomat, Hossein-Bor embodies the changing face of UK foreign service

LONDON — In a landmark appointment that signals both personal triumph and institutional transformation, Kanbar Hossein-Bor has become the first former refugee to serve as a UK high commissioner. The 44-year-old will take up his post in Fiji, a nation with which Britain shares long-standing ties and current climate cooperation challenges.

Hossein-Bor, who arrived in the UK in 1987 as a child refugee from Iran, described his appointment as a deeply personal victory — and a powerful symbol of what refugees can contribute to British society.

From Balochistan to Britain

Born into a prominent Balochi family near the borderlands of Iran, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, Hossein-Bor’s life took a dramatic turn when his mother fled political turmoil in the wake of the Iranian Revolution. At age six, he was smuggled across the desert into Pakistan before joining his mother in the UK, settling in Southampton.

“In her mind, [the Foreign Office] was a bastion of the establishment,” he said of his mother’s initial doubts. “She was a little worried of rejection.”

Hossein-Bor would go on to defy those early fears, ultimately joining the UK Foreign Office as a legal adviser and transitioning into a diplomatic career. Along the way, he studied law at Warwick and Cambridge, practiced as a barrister, and served in high-pressure environments such as Iraq during the 2007 surge.

Rewriting the refugee narrative

In his remarks to the press, Hossein-Bor emphasized his desire to challenge negative perceptions of refugees.

“I am worried there is a depiction of refugees and asylum seekers as people who come here and just take, take, take,” he said. “For me, Britain’s given me all these opportunities and my career is a sense of me giving back.”

He recounted formative experiences, including being cast as Winston Churchill in a school play and facing segregation during a school trip to France due to his UN travel documents — moments that shaped his deep appreciation for the UK’s values and its potential for social mobility.

Now a father of two, he sees his career as an example of “giving back” and helping reframe what it means to be British in the modern age.

Diplomatic legacy and symbolism

Fluent in Balochi, Farsi, and Arabic, Hossein-Bor carries an “international outlook” grounded in family history. He referenced Sir Robert Sandeman, the 19th-century British colonial officer whose policies impacted Hossein-Bor’s tribal ancestors.

“To be his administrative successor... reflects how the UK has changed,” he said. “How I’m an instrument of change, but also how I’ve been able to step in the footprints of people of colour who have made that journey easier for me.”

His appointment takes on added resonance at a time when David Lammy serves as foreign secretary and Rishi Sunak has recently completed his term as prime minister — both examples of increasing diversity at the highest levels of UK leadership.

UK’s evolving Foreign Office

Hossein-Bor’s ascent highlights the Foreign Office’s gradual but meaningful shift toward meritocratic inclusivity. In a statement, a Foreign Office spokesperson praised the appointment:

“We are proud to be a diplomatic service where individuals of all backgrounds can rise on merit. Kanbar’s story embodies that.”

As high commissioner to Fiji, Hossein-Bor will focus on strengthening bilateral relations, particularly in areas related to climate resilience and regional stability in the Pacific. He also sees the appointment as an opportunity to inspire future generations.

“I hope in my own modest way, we can be challenging the stereotype of what it means to be British,” he said.

Hossein-Bor’s journey — from refugee child to high-ranking diplomat — serves as a powerful reminder of the potential for reinvention and contribution that lies within refugee communities.

Stay tuned to The Horizons Times for more on the evolving face of global diplomacy and the voices shaping the UK’s role on the world stage.