UK Anti-terrorism Police Investigate Stabbing of Iranian Journalist

The former headquarters of Iran International
The former headquarters of Iran International
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UK Anti-terrorism Police Investigate Stabbing of Iranian Journalist

The former headquarters of Iran International
The former headquarters of Iran International

British counter-terrorism detectives are investigating after a journalist working for a Persian language media organization was stabbed in London on Friday amid fears he had been targeted because of his job, police said.
Police said the man, aged in his 30s, was attacked and sustained an injury to his leg in the incident in Wimbledon, southwest London, on Friday afternoon.
Britain's National Union of Journalists (NUJ) said the victim was prominent British-based Iranian journalist Pouria Zeraati, who hosts a show on the Persian language television news network Iran International which is critical of Iran's government.
Police said his injuries were not believed to be life-threatening and he was in a stable condition, Reuters reported.
"This cowardly attack on Pouria is deeply shocking, and our thoughts are with him, his family and all of his colleagues at Iran International," Michelle Stanistreet, the NUJ general secretary said in a statement.
In January, Britain imposed sanctions on Iranian officials it said were involved in threats to kill journalists on British soil.
Those officials were members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Unit 840, which an investigation by ITV news in Britain said was involved in plots to assassinate two television presenters from Iran International in the UK.
"While we are keeping an open mind, given the occupation of the victim and our publicized concerns about the threat to employees of that organization, the investigation is being led by the Counter Terrorism Command," Commander Dominic Murphy, the head of that unit, said.
"I must stress that, at this early stage of our investigation, we do not know the reason why this victim was attacked and there could be a number of explanations for this."



France Won’t Hesitate to Restore UN Sanctions on Iran if No Deal, Says Foreign Minister 

France's Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noel Barrot speaks during a stakeout outside the Security Council at UN Headquarters in New York City, US, April 28, 2025. (Reuters)
France's Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noel Barrot speaks during a stakeout outside the Security Council at UN Headquarters in New York City, US, April 28, 2025. (Reuters)
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France Won’t Hesitate to Restore UN Sanctions on Iran if No Deal, Says Foreign Minister 

France's Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noel Barrot speaks during a stakeout outside the Security Council at UN Headquarters in New York City, US, April 28, 2025. (Reuters)
France's Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noel Barrot speaks during a stakeout outside the Security Council at UN Headquarters in New York City, US, April 28, 2025. (Reuters)

France will not think twice about reimposing United Nations sanctions on Iran if negotiations to reach a deal over its nuclear program do not succeed, its foreign minister told the UN Security Council late on Monday.

France, Britain and Germany - the "E3" - are parties to a 2015 nuclear deal with Iran that expires in October and have the power to initiate its mechanism for reimposing sanctions, called snapback, at the Security Council.

"It goes without saying that when the Iranian nuclear deal expires in a few weeks, if European security interests are not guaranteed, we will not hesitate for a single second to reapply all the sanctions that were lifted 10 years ago," Jean-Noel Barrot said.

Iran and the United States, which quit the 2015 deal and reimposed its own sanctions, have been holding talks on the decades-old standoff.

US President Donald Trump has said he is confident of clinching a new pact that would block Iran's path to a nuclear bomb, although Iran says its program is purely civilian.

According to diplomats, the E3 countries are now looking to trigger snapback by August, rather than June, if no substantial deal can be found by then. The opportunity expires on October 18.

"These sanctions would then permanently close off Iranian access to technology, investment, and the European market, with devastating effects on the country's economy. This is not what we want, and that is why I solemnly call on Iran to take the necessary decisions today to avoid the worst," Barrot said.

Iran has proposed meeting the E3, possibly in Rome this Friday, if talks resume with the United States, four diplomats said on Monday, cautioning that the E3 have yet to respond.