Italian journalist Cecilia Sala is returning home by plane after being released from Iranian custody, the office of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni announced Wednesday.
On December 19, Sala, 29, who was working under a standard journalistic visa, was arrested in Tehran and imprisoned in solitary confinement at the infamous Evin prison in the Iranian capital.
Sala was taken three days after Iranian businessman Mohammad Abedini was detained in Milan on a U.S. warrant for allegedly providing drone parts that Washington claims were used in an attack in Jordan in 2024 that killed three U.S. service members. Iran has denied any role in the attack.
According to the Italian statement, Sala’s release was “the result of intense work on diplomatic and intelligence channels.” It didn’t bring up the Abedini case. Abedini was still incarcerated in Milan, according to a source with knowledge of the situation.
Meloni posted on X, “I would like to thank everyone who made Cecilia’s return possible.” When Sala arrived in Rome later Wednesday, the Italian prime minister was supposed to see her face-to-face.
Sala is employed by the podcast Chora Media and the newspaper Il Foglio. Meloni, who had worried that the matter might linger for weeks, won diplomatically with her prompt release.
Over the weekend, the Italian leader unexpectedly travelled to Florida to meet with Donald Trump, the US president-elect. Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini stated they had spoken about Sala’s predicament, but no more information about the discussions was disclosed.
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