Iranian journalist gives latest news in hospital after being stabbed outside London home

An Iranian TV journalist who was stabbed in a horrific knife attack outside his London home posted a photo from his hospital bed as counter-terrorism police were called in to investigate.

Pouria Zeraati is in a stable condition after being stabbed in the leg during the incident in south London on Friday.

Iran International spokesman Adam Bailey said on Saturday the incident was “terrible” but Mr Zelati was “doing well” and recovering in hospital. Hours later, he posted a photo of himself in the hospital, flashing a peace sign.

The London-based dissident channel aims to provide independent coverage of Iran, but has been declared a terrorist organization by the regime in Tehran. No arrests have been made so far.

Iran’s charge d’affaires in the UK, Mehdi Hosseini Mateen, said “we deny” any connection with the incident.

Witnesses said Zelati’s attacker was “visibly laughing” before fleeing the stabbing scene and getting into his car.

One neighbor, who asked not to be named, said he was walking along a residential street with a friend and witnessed the aftermath.

He told the Standard: “It was a very quiet suburban road and we saw two young men sprint towards us about 20 yards away and get into a car. They drove away.

“It felt strange. Both men were laughing, very clearly. I looked them both in the eye – they were only a cricket pitch away from me.

“We took the number plate and about ten seconds later a guy tried to stop us. We tried to give first aid and take off his jeans.

“He had been stabbed, I think four times. He was wearing jeans and there was a pool of blood on his leg. It was [awful] Check. “

Mr Bailey claimed that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) had been targeting the channel’s journalists and their families.

He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “Whatever the outcome of the investigation, this is a shocking, appalling incident.

“But for him, as a lead presenter, and our other presenters and reporters, yes, it was a huge shock. It was the first of its kind.”

Asked what he thought was the reason behind the attack, Mr Bailey said: “We can’t say. The fact that counter-terrorism is leading the investigation probably speaks for itself.

“Iran’s international organization, along with our colleagues at BBC Farsi, has been under threat, very serious threats, over the past 18 months since the IRGC kept repeating ‘we are coming for you’.”

He said the IRGC “contacts through agents and they don’t leave a paper trail.”

“No one would call the IRGC and say ‘Hey, it’s us,’ but families would be taken in for questioning and threatened.”

He added: “The scale has increased dramatically over the past few months. And the scale and type of inquiries have become more aggressive, ‘tell your relatives to stop working for this channel’ and so on.”

The Met said in a statement that the motive for the attack was not yet known. But police added that Zerati’s occupation, coupled with recent threats against Iranian journalists in the UK, meant the investigation was being led by specialist counter-terrorism officers.

It is understood that since 2022, police have foiled a number of plots to kidnap or kill individuals in the UK or in the UK considered enemies of the Iranian regime.

In January this year, the UK Foreign Office announced sanctions against members of IRGC Unit 840 following an ITV investigation into a plot to assassinate two Iranian international presenters in the UK.

Officials said the plot was the latest credible example of Iran trying to kill or intimidate Britons or people with links to the UK, with at least 15 such threats occurring since January 2022.

In a separate case in December 2023, an IT employee was jailed for three-and-a-half years for spying on an Iranian international organization before launching a “planned attack” on British soil.

In February, Magomed Hossein Doftayev conducted hostile reconnaissance against other unidentified individuals at the London headquarters of Persian-language television channel Iran International.

Following a trial at the Old Bailey, the Chechen-born Austrian was found guilty of attempting to gather information for terrorist purposes.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police on 0800 789 321.