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Two Iranians found guilty of spying on journalists in UK as part of plot against dissident TV station
Developing story first seen 59 minutes ago
Farhad Javadi Manesh and Shapoor Noori have been found guilty of assisting a foreign intelligence service, in a case involving an Iranian plot to target journalists and a lawyer in the UK. The verdicts add to a series of reported attempts to recruit people in Britain to attack critics of Iran’s regime.
Mostafa Sepahvand, 41, was offered £150,000 to carry out serious violence but received £5,000 before his arrest on 3 May last year, without locating his targets. Prosecutors said the men gathered information about Iran International journalist Mojtaba Pour Mohsen, lawyer Jonathan Turner and dissident journalist Kambiz Hosseini; Manesh, 46, and Noori, 57, had arrived in the UK by small boat and claimed asylum in 2022.
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In short
- Two men were convicted of assisting Iran’s intelligence service.
- The plot targeted journalists and a lawyer in the UK.
- The would-be attacker was arrested before finding his targets.
How this story developed
- 2 minutes ago Two men have been found guilty of helping Iran’s intelligence service target journalists and a lawyer in the UK, with the aim of subjecting them to serious violence.
- 35 minutes ago Farhad Javadi Manesh and Shapoor Noori have been found guilty of assisting a foreign intelligence service, in a case involving an Iranian plot to target journalists and a lawyer in the UK.
Explained simply
Iran International is a Persian-language television station that reports on Iran and is critical of the country’s government. Journalists who report on the Iranian authorities, and people who represent or support dissidents, can become targets of threats or violence.
Iran’s intelligence service is the state agency responsible for gathering information and carrying out security work for the government. UK authorities have reported several plots against journalists in Britain involving people recruited by Iran, raising questions about the safety of those living here and the reach of foreign intelligence services.
The people named in the case include Iran International journalist Mojtaba Pour Mohsen, dissident journalist Kambiz Hosseini and lawyer Jonathan Turner. The case concerns alleged efforts to gather information about them to enable serious violence, making it part of wider concerns about pressure on critics of the Iranian government beyond Iran’s borders.
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