Italian journalist Cecilia Sala was released from an Iranian prison on Wednesday, just three days after a meeting between Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and US President-elect Donald Trump. Sala, 29, had been detained in Tehran since December 19 on charges of “violating the laws of the Islamic Republic” while working with a regular journalist visa.
Sala’s release was facilitated through diplomatic efforts, according to an Italian government statement. Her partner works for an Italian news website, Il Post, which reported that Trump gave “a sort of green light” to Italy to negotiate with Iran and promised not to politicize the issue with the outgoing US administration.
Meanwhile, Iranian businessman Mohammad Abedini remains in a Milan prison, awaiting a court decision on his request to be released to house arrest ahead of eventual extradition proceedings to the United States. Abedini was arrested on a US warrant for allegedly supplying drone parts used in a 2024 attack that killed three US service members in Jordan.
Iran has denied involvement in the attack and dismissed accusations that it imprisoned Sala to pressure Italy into releasing Abedini. Sala’s father, Renato Sala, expressed relief at her release, saying he had been under the impression that a “game of chess was being played” but there were more than just two players involved in her case.
Sala will return home after flying back to Rome, where she was greeted by Meloni and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani. Her case highlights the political importance attached to it, with human rights groups accusing Iran of trying to extract concessions from other countries through such arrests.
Source: https://www.reuters.com/world/italian-journalist-cecilia-sala-freed-iran-prison-italian-pm-office-says-2025-01-08