An Iranian television journalist who was stabbed outside his London home on Friday has shared a defiant photo of himself in hospital – after a colleague at his broadcaster said threats towards its staff had “escalated dramatically”.
Pouria Zeraati, a presenter at London-based broadcaster Iran International, was stabbed in the leg outside his home in Wimbledon, south London, on Friday afternoon.
A photo the 36-year-old shared on social media on Saturday afternoon showed him making a ‘peace’ sign with his fingers in a hospital bed.
Police have said the motivation for the attack is not yet clear, but his occupation – coupled with recent threats towards UK-based Iranian journalists – meant the probe was being led by specialist counter-terrorism officers.
Pouria Zeraati. Pic: Iran International
Iran International spokesman Adam Baillie said the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) has been targeting its broadcasters.
In October 2022 the IRGC – a key security force for the regime in Tehran – “openly” and “nakedly” warned Iran International ‘we’re coming for you’, Mr Baillie added.
When asked about the motives behind the attack itself, he said: “We can’t say. The fact that counter-terrorism is leading the investigation probably speaks for itself.”
But he added that Mr Zeraati had received death threats before and that the threats against Iran International’s staff had “escalated dramatically” over time.
Since 2022, several plots to either kidnap or kill British or UK-based individuals perceived as enemies of the Iranian regime have been disrupted by police, it is understood.
Mehdi Hosseini Matin, the Iranian charge d’affaires in the UK, said “we deny any link” to the knife attack on Friday.
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But speaking to Sky News, Iran International’s Mr Baillie said: “I just spoke to him [Mr Zeraati]… and he sounded very well – obviously very shaken up by the whole thing.
“But he’s making a good recovery and is looking forward to getting back to work, which is excellent.
“It’s come as a great shock because this is the first sort of physical attack on a staff member.
“But our staff have been under considerable threats for a good year-and-a-half.”