An Austrian national of Chechen origin has gone on trial in London for allegedly spying for a group that may have been preparing to attack a Persian-language news channel based in the British capital.
In his opening speech at the Old Bailey court on December 11, Prosecutor Nicholas de la Poer told a jury that Magomed-Husejn Dovtaev boarded a plane from Vienna to London to gather "hostile reconnaissance" on a building occupied by Saudi-funded Iran International.
"The very fact that the defendant went to collect this information shows that planning by others was already under way," he added.
As part of its ongoing crackdown on dissent, the Islamic Republic of Iran, one of the world's top oppressors of journalists and free speech, has escalated its aggressive campaign to curb the local media from reporting.
Dovtaev was detained by officers from the Metropolitan Police Counter-Terrorism Command in west London in February, and was charged with possession of records containing information likely to be useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism.
The 31-year-old defendant pleaded not guilty at a previous court hearing.
In September, Iranian Intelligence Minister Esmaeil Khatib warned that Iran International and other Persian-language media outlets operating outside of Iran are "enemy media" and "will not be safe."
Iran International announced last year it had temporarily shifted its broadcast operations to Washington due to a serious and immediate threat flagged by the UK police against its journalists and its offices.
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