Two men have been convicted for their involvement in a targeted knife attack against Pouria Zeraati, a British journalist of Iranian origin, in London. The prosecution alleged that the assault was orchestrated on behalf of the Tehran regime. Zeraati, who works for Iran International, a Farsi-language dissident broadcaster, was stabbed in the leg outside his west London home in 2024.

On Friday, jurors at Woolwich crown court in south-east London found Nandito Badea, 21, and George Stana, 25, both Romanian nationals, guilty of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm. The pair had denied the charges and are scheduled to be sentenced at the Old Bailey on 3 July. A third individual implicated in the attack, David Andrei, was arrested in Romania but did not face trial alongside Badea and Stana in the UK.

Pouria Zeraati was stabbed three times in the thigh as he walked to his Wimbledon home. Prosecutors characterized the incident as a "planned attack preceded by reconnaissance which was ordered by a third party acting on behalf of the Iranian state." Evidence presented during the trial included images of "Wanted: dead or alive" posters displayed in Tehran, featuring journalists like Zeraati. Iran International's critical coverage of the Iranian government and its Saudi backing led Tehran to designate it as a terrorist organization in 2022.

Duncan Atkinson KC, prosecuting, detailed how the three men acted as a coordinated team, conducting "extensive surveillance and reconnaissance" prior to the assault. CCTV footage from Wimbledon showed Nandito Badea wielding the knife, while David Andrei, who was not on trial, was also identified by the victim as being part of the attack. George Stana was responsible for waiting in a getaway car, which was also captured on CCTV during what was described as "hostile reconnaissance" before the stabbing. Despite their conviction, Badea and Stana informed police that they were surprised by the stabbing, attempting to shift blame to Andrei as the true culprit. It was revealed that their presence in the UK was financially supported by external parties, including a company named Hemroc Ltd, with funds channelled through Stana’s sister’s bank account. Jurors were also told that the attackers were seen laughing as they fled the scene.

The head of Iran’s diplomatic mission in the UK has publicly denied any connection between the Tehran regime and the attack on Zeraati. However, the incident highlights a concerning trend of the "war in Iran" extending to diaspora communities within the UK, involving various forms of aggression, including arson attacks against Iranian dissidents and Jewish people. This month, another individual is slated to stand trial for allegedly conducting surveillance on a different journalist at Iran International, purportedly on behalf of Iran. In April, London-based Iranian journalists voiced their fears to the Guardian, citing a surge in threats and physical assaults that they attribute to the Tehran regime's efforts to silence Persian-language news media.

Frank Ferguson, head of the Crown Prosecution Service’s special crime and counter-terrorism division, underscored the gravity of the convictions, stating that the evidence clearly demonstrated the Zeraati case was "a deliberate, targeted attack on a journalist, carried out after months of planning and surveillance." He further emphasized that "These convictions reflect the strength of that evidence and the seriousness of an offence designed to silence a journalist through intimidation and violence."