Journalist Targeted by Iran Calls UK's IRGC Crackdown 'Happiest Day'

British Iranian journalist Pouria Zeraati described the U.K.'s formal plans to ban support for Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as "the happiest day of my life since I was stabbed." Zeraati, a prominent anchor for Iran International, a network critical of the Iranian regime, has been a target of threats and intimidation. He believes the attack on him in March 2024, where he was stabbed three times in the thigh, was orchestrated by the regime.

Zeraati emphasized that the U.K.'s designation of the IRGC as a "threat to national security" is a crucial step in countering the Iranian regime. "In order to counter this threat, we need to counter the main cause of it, the root of it, which is the Iranian regime and specifically the IRGC," he told CBS News. He believes the new powers will significantly aid law enforcement in tracking and monitoring the "main source of the threat, which is in Tehran."

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the happiest day of my life since I was stabbed

The designation, approved by both houses of the U.K. Parliament and fast-tracked by the outgoing administration, makes it a criminal offense in the U.K. to provide support or assistance to the IRGC. Penalties include up to 14 years in prison, placing support for the IRGC on par with support for designated terrorist organizations. Acts of sabotage carried out on behalf of the group could result in life imprisonment.

Iranian journalists working in the West and their families in Iran have frequently faced threats from the regime. Zeraati's face appeared on billboards in Iran accusing him of being a child killer, and posters declared "Wanted: Dead or Alive." Iran International itself was designated a terrorist organization by Iran. In February 2022, heightened security measures, including armed police presence, were installed outside its London studios due to "credible and immediate threats" to staff, forcing the channel to temporarily suspend operations in the U.K. and relocate to Washington, D.C.

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In order to counter this threat, we need to counter the main cause of it, the root of it, which is the Iranian regime and specifically the IRGC. This is a huge step that gives huge leverage to law enforcement to track, monitor, and counter the main source of the threat, which is in Tehran. Not in Eastern Europe and all the other proxies working on behalf of the regime.