Iran's top diplomat in Britain has dismissed accusations linking the Iranian government to a stabbing attack on a London-based TV presenter, amid rising concerns over threats to dissidents.
Mehdi Hosseini Matin, the country's charge d'affaires, said that Iran "denies any link" to the stabbing of Pouria Zeraati, 36, a presenter at opposition news channel Iran International. The incident occurred outside Zeraati's residence in Wimbledon on Friday. Zeraati is in stable condition and is expected to be discharged from the hospital soon.
Although the Metropolitan Police have not yet determined a motive for the attack, Zeraati's profession and recent threats against UK-based Iranian journalists have prompted counter-terrorism officers to lead the investigation.
Zeraati is the host of the television program Last Word on Iran International. Last year, he interviewed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The channel is British-owned and associated with the opposition to the Iranian regime.
Zeraati extensively covered the so-called "hijab protest" that swept through the Islamic Republic in 2022 following the death in custody of Kurdish-Iranian woman Mahsa Amini. The channel reported there has been a "dramatic increase" in threats received by its employees, including Zeraat, in the years since.
Adam Baillie, a spokesperson for the channel, told the Observer, “There are credible threats which are issued against individuals, then they receive visits from the counter-terror police and Met police and then they have to take precautions. It’s very alarming. Baillie also mentioned that previous threats to Iran International staff indicated a possible planned attack.
"The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) doesn’t leave fingerprints. Why would they? They operate through certain third parties which is an easy thing for them to do. They could operate via criminal gangs and in any city they want. They would never leave a paper trail between an attack and themselves. It does appear on the surface to be a planned attack and they do have a motive to carry out the threat."