New Delhi, July 5 -- Two Romanian men were sentenced Friday to eight and 12 years in prison over the stabbing of a journalist from a Persian-language television station, an attack the judge said was carried out on behalf of the Iranian state.

Pouria Zeraati, a presenter at London-based Iran International, was stabbed in the leg in March 2024 outside his home in the Wimbledon area of London.

Nandito Badea, 21, and George Stana, 25, were found guilty by a jury last month of wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

Judge Bobbie Cheema-Grubb said the "evidence overwhelmingly points" to the attack being carried out on behalf of the Iranian authorities.

"I am sure that this was an attack carried out for and for the benefit of a f...