Two men have been jailed for a combined 20 years for carrying out a “targeted” knife attack on a journalist in London, an assault a judge concluded was orchestrated “on behalf of the Iranian state”.
At the Old Bailey on Friday, Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb sentenced George Stana, 25, to 12 years’ imprisonment and Nandito Badea, 21, to eight years. Both Romanian nationals were convicted of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm despite denying the charges. The judge stated that Stana “ought to have known” the “targeted and serious” attack was on behalf of Iran, and that Badea, who was involved in the conspiracy for a shorter period, bore a lesser degree of culpability.
The attack occurred on 29 March 2024 when Pouria Zeraati, an Iranian-British journalist for Iran International, was stabbed three times in the thigh outside his home in Wimbledon. The court heard that Badea and another man, David Andrei – who remains in Romania – “crowded” Mr Zeraati, with one of them carrying out the stabbing. Stana waited in a blue Mazda 3 getaway car that had been captured on CCTV during “hostile reconnaissance” prior to the assault.
Prosecutors described the incident as “a planned attack preceded by reconnaissance, and which was ordered by a third party acting on behalf of the Iranian state”. Evidence presented to the jury included CCTV footage, mobile phone data, financial records, eyewitness testimony and travel records. Badea and Andrei had visited Mr Zeraati’s property on eight occasions across five dates, having flown into the UK “expressly” for the attack, which prosecutors said had been planned for over a year. After the stabbing, the defendants abandoned their vehicle, disposed of clothing and travelled to Heathrow Airport to fly to Geneva, Switzerland. Jurors were told the attackers were seen laughing as they fled. They were arrested in Romania in December 2024 and extradited to the UK.
In a victim impact statement, Mr Zeraati told police the incident had left him “scared and anxious” and forced him to relocate abroad “for fear of any reprisals”. The court heard that Mr Zeraati was a “well known critic of the regime” who had previously been subjected to threats, as had members of his family. Iran International, which is critical of the Iranian regime, has been designated a terrorist organisation by Iran. Mr Zeraati, a high-profile figure for the broadcaster, had even seen a billboard of his face in Tehran bearing a “Wanted: Dead or Alive” message.
Rupert Kent, prosecuting, asserted: “These defendants knew, or at the very least ought reasonably to have known, the attack upon Mr Zeraati was instigated by a foreign power, we submit namely the Iranian regime, with which the defendants had an indirect relationship through third parties.” Peter Caldwell KC, representing Stana, argued his client was “functionally illiterate” and “not aware of current affairs”, thus “could not have known” he was operating on behalf of Iran. “Mr Stana was useful to others for the conduct that they had intended but he himself did not know the use to which he was being put,” Mr Caldwell stated. David Spens KC, for Badea, contended the court “cannot be sure” his client was the one who stabbed Mr Zeraati.
Declaring that she was “sure that this was an attack carried out for and for the benefit of a foreign power”, Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb stated: “Oppressive regimes tend to do all they can to suppress opposition, they cannot abide the serious scrutiny that fearless journalists provide.” She highlighted that Mr Zeraati was a “well known critic of the regime” and noted the broader context of Iranian state-sponsored activities. Counter Terrorism Police have revealed they have foiled 20 plots in the UK linked to Iran since 2022.
The attack on Mr Zeraati fits a wider pattern of what security analysts describe as Iran’s transnational repression, targeting dissidents, journalists and perceived enemies of the regime abroad. Since 2017, journalists at Iran International have faced sustained harassment, including threats of assassination and kidnapping, physical assaults, online abuse and hacking. In August 2025, lawyers reported that 45 Iran International journalists and 315 of their relatives had received death threats from Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security. In November 2022, two Iran International personnel were warned of “imminent threats to their lives”, prompting them to flee the UK. In February 2023, Iran International TV temporarily ceased operations in London and moved to Washington D.C. due to mounting safety concerns.
Intelligence assessments indicate that Iran increasingly uses criminal proxies and vulnerable individuals to carry out operations abroad, creating distance and plausible deniability. The use of Romanian nationals in the Zeraati attack aligns with this modus operandi. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which has been designated a terrorist organisation by the United States, Canada and the European Union, is considered a key entity involved in Iran’s external operations.
Pouria Zeraati, born on September 22, 1987, holds a degree in mechanical engineering from Brunel University London. Before joining Iran International in 2020, he worked as a newsroom editor, host and announcer for Manoto Network. He presents the program “The Last Word” for Iran International and is married to Oldouz Rezvani.
