Romanians convicted of stabbing journalist in UK, prosecutors say they acted for Iran
LONDON, June 5 (Reuters) - Two Romanian men whom British prosecutors said were acting as proxies for the Iranian government were on Friday found guilty of stabbing a journalist working for a Persian-language media organisation in London.
Pouria Zaratifoukolaei, known as Pouria Zeraati, a British journalist of Iranian origin who works for Iran International, was stabbed three times in the leg near his home in southwest London in March 2024.
Prosecutor Duncan Atkinson told jurors at the start of the trial last month that three men had targeted Zeraati, whose Saudi-funded TV employer is critical of Iran's government and has been designated a terrorist organisation by Tehran.
Atkinson said they had carried out "a planned attack preceded by reconnaissance and which was ordered by a third party acting on behalf of the Iranian state".
Iran denied any involvement. Nandito Badea, 21, and George Stana, 25, both pleaded not guilty to charges of wounding with intent, but were convicted at London's Woolwich Crown Court.
The third man accused of involvement, David Andrei, was arrested in Romania but was not involved in the trial.
Atkinson told jurors that posters were put up in Tehran in 2022 featuring pictures of journalists including Zeraati, under the heading "Wanted: dead or alive".
Iran International has been targeted for apparent proxy surveillance several times in recent years.
A Greek national was charged last month with surveilling a journalist, while in April three men were charged over an attempted arson attack on offices linked to the station in northwest London.
Chief Superintendent Kris Wright from London's Metropolitan Police said that "we've seen an increase in 'proxies' being used by a foreign state to commit serious criminal acts in the UK, designed to threaten individuals, as well as our way of life".
A spokesperson for Iran International's parent company Volant Media welcomed the guilty verdicts, saying in a statement that its journalists are "subject to an ongoing campaign of intimidation" by Iran.
(Reporting by Sam Tobin. Editing by Mark Potter)
