Two Men Charged over Attack on British-Iranian Journalist

A general view of the Canary Wharf financial district is pictured in London, Britain, September 30, 2022. REUTERS/Maja Smiejkowska/File Photo
A general view of the Canary Wharf financial district is pictured in London, Britain, September 30, 2022. REUTERS/Maja Smiejkowska/File Photo
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Two Men Charged over Attack on British-Iranian Journalist

A general view of the Canary Wharf financial district is pictured in London, Britain, September 30, 2022. REUTERS/Maja Smiejkowska/File Photo
A general view of the Canary Wharf financial district is pictured in London, Britain, September 30, 2022. REUTERS/Maja Smiejkowska/File Photo

British prosecutors said on Thursday they had authorized charges to be brought against two Romanian men over the stabbing of a journalist working for a Persian language media organization in London in March.

Pouria Zeraati, a British-Iranian journalist who works for Iran International, sustained leg injuries after being stabbed near his home in Wimbledon, southwest London.

Counter-terrorism police have led the investigation into the attack over concerns he had been targeted because of his job at the Persian language television news network, which is critical of Iran's government.

Britain's Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said Nandito Badea, 19, and George Stana, 23, had been arrested in Romania on Wednesday and charged with wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, and wounding.
"They have both now appeared in a Romanian court for the start of extradition proceedings," a CPS spokesperson said. "We continue to work closely with Romanian authorities, to ensure that our extradition request is progressed through the courts."
British police, security officials and politicians have issued a number of warnings about what they say is Iran's growing use of criminal proxies to carry out attacks abroad.
In December last year, an Austrian man was convicted in Britain of collecting information that could be used in an attack after he was accused of carrying out "hostile reconnaissance" on Iran International's London headquarters.
The following month, Britain imposed sanctions on Iranian officials it said were involved in threats to kill journalists on British soil.
The UK's domestic spy chief, Ken McCallum, said in October that since January 2022 his MI5 service and the police had responded to 20 Iranian-backed plots, which potentially posed lethal threats to UK citizens and residents.
Iran rejected those accusations and accused Britain of hosting what it called terrorist groups.
"We're happy for Pouria, who suffered the attack," Reuters quoted Adam Baillie, a spokesperson for Iran International, as saying. "And we're delighted that the UK police investigation into the attack has progressed to this stage. It is reassuring for our journalists, as for others in organizations under similar threat."



Trump Says Iran Must Give Up Dream of Nuclear Weapon or Face Harsh Response

US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, April 14, 2025. (AFP)
US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, April 14, 2025. (AFP)
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Trump Says Iran Must Give Up Dream of Nuclear Weapon or Face Harsh Response

US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, April 14, 2025. (AFP)
US President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, April 14, 2025. (AFP)

President Donald Trump said on Monday he believes Iran is intentionally delaying a nuclear deal with the United States and that it must abandon any drive for a nuclear weapon or face a possible military strike on Tehran's atomic facilities.

"I think they're tapping us along," Trump told reporters after US special envoy Steve Witkoff met in Oman on Saturday with a senior Iranian official.

Both Iran and the United States said on Saturday that they held "positive" and "constructive" talks in Oman. A second round is scheduled for Saturday, and a source briefed on the planning said the meeting was likely to be held in Rome.

The source, speaking to Reuters on the condition of anonymity, said the discussions are aimed at exploring what is possible, including a broad framework of what a potential deal would look like.

"Iran has to get rid of the concept of a nuclear weapon. They cannot have a nuclear weapon," Trump said.

Asked if US options for a response include a military strike on Tehran's nuclear facilities, Trump said: "Of course it does."

Trump said the Iranians need to move fast to avoid a harsh response because "they're fairly close" to developing a nuclear weapon.

The US and Iran held indirect talks during former President Joe Biden's term, but they made little, if any progress. The last known direct negotiations between the two governments were under then-President Barack Obama, who spearheaded the 2015 international nuclear deal that Trump later abandoned.