The French government granted Mehran Naseri the right to live on its territory, but the Iranian returned to his familiar surroundings a few weeks ago
The Iranian Mehran Karimi Naseri, who inspired Steven Spielberg’s film “The Terminal”, starring Tom Hanks, died at the Charles de Gaulle airport in France where he lived for 18 years.
Nasseri, known as “Sir Alfred”, turned a small corner of Charles de Gaulle airport into his home in 1988 and remained there until 2006, due to a legal “impasse” and then by choice. After some years, the French government granted Nasseri the right to live on its territory, but the Iranian returned to his familiar surroundings a few weeks ago, where he died of a heart attack.
Mehran Karimi Nasseri, the Iranian refugee who lived in the departure lounge of Terminal 1 in Charles de Gaulle Airport from 26 August 1988 until July 2006, passed away yesterday.
His story inspired Tom Hank’s ‘The Terminal’.
RIP Mehran. pic.twitter.com/IKCLMKu7jv
— Abhilasha (@FernFly) November 13, 2022
Naseri was born in 1945 in the Khuzestan province of Iran and first traveled to Europe with the aim of finding his British mother.
He spent a few years in Belgium, having previously been deported from several other countries – including Britain, the Netherlands and Germany – for not having the proper travel documents. He then traveled to France, and settled in Terminal 2F of Charles de Gaulle Airport, where surrounded by his few possessions he chronicled his life in a notebook. These notes formed the basis for his autobiography published in 2004.
His story piqued the interest of Steven Spielberg, who directed the movie “The Terminal” starring Tom Hanks and Catherine Zeta-Jones.
Although he was finally granted refugee asylum in 1999 and allowed to stay in France, Naseri remained at the airport until 2006, when he was taken to hospital due to illness. Naseri then lived for some years in a hotel, with the money he had made from the production of the film.
An airport official stated that Naseri returned to the airport a few weeks ago, where he remained until his death. According to officials, he had thousands of euros on him.
Mehran Karimi Nasseri, the inspiration behind Spielberg’s ‘The Terminal’ after making Charles de Gaulle his home for 18 years, has died. A look at his fascinating life for @BBCWorld pic.twitter.com/cJLJhTDLDZ
— Emer McCarthy (@emeramccarthy) November 13, 2022
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I am currently a news writer for News Bulletin247 where I mostly cover sports news. I have always been interested in writing and it is something I am very passionate about. In my spare time, I enjoy reading and spending time with my family and friends.
