Cecilia Sala, an Italian journalist who was detained last month in Iran while on a reporting trip, was released and on her way back to Italy on Wednesday, the Italian government said in a statement.
Ms. Sala, who had a journalist visa, was arrested on Dec. 19 on charges of violating the laws of the Islamic Republic of Iran, but officials there have not provided any further details.
“The plane that is taking journalist Cecilia Sala home took off a few minutes ago from Tehran,” the Italian government announced Wednesday morning, adding that “thanks to intense work on diplomatic and intelligence channels, our compatriot has been released by the Iranian authorities.”
Ms. Sala, 29, had been held for 20 days and told her family that she was kept in an isolation cell, with only two blankets and constant light, her family has said.
Fars, a news agency affiliated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, also reported the news of Ms. Sala’s release, citing Italy’s prime minister.
On Wednesday Ms. Sala’s partner, Daniele Raineri, said she had called him and told him, “I am free.”
“I am so happy,” Mr. Raineri said as he prepared to go to the airport to greet Ms. Sala. He said the wait was “excruciating” but that Italy had done “exceptional work.”
It was unclear how Italy obtained the release of Ms. Sala.
She was taken into custody three days after the police in Milan arrested Mohammad Abedini Najafabadi, a 38-year-old Iranian, on behalf of the United States. Mr. Abedini was accused by the United States of providing drone components to the Revolutionary Guards — the country’s primary military force.
The Iranian authorities said on Dec. 25 they expected “the Italian government to prevent the violation of the human rights of the Iranian citizen who has been unjustly accused by the United States.”
Iran has often jailed foreigners and dual nationals to extract concessions from their countries, including prisoner swaps, but Iranian officials said on Monday that there had been no connection between Mr. Abedini’s arrest and Ms. Sala’s.
On Wednesday, Mr. Abedini’s lawyer in Italy, Alfredo De Francesco, did not respond to questions about developments on Mr. Abedini’s case. He said he was happy about Ms. Sala’s release and now needed to focus on his client’s case.
Ms. Sala’s visit to Iran was her first since 2021, and since then, much had changed in the country. A new president had been elected, its shadow war with Israel had moved into the open, and Bashar al-Assad, the president of Syria and a longtime ally, had recently been ousted.
Ms. Sala, 29, a writer and podcaster, set out to document the shifting atmosphere. She interviewed a standup comedian, and she photographed women in cafes and on the streets who were not wearing head scarves, posting a selection of images on Instagram last month and describing them as “Tehran’s new faces and new streets.”
On Dec. 19, as she prepared to leave her hotel for a meeting at about midday, her phone was disconnected from the internet, a person close to the family said. For 24 hours, her family did not hear from her, until after the plane on which Ms. Sala was supposed to depart took off without her. Then, they received a phone call. “I was arrested,” Ms. Sala told her family. “I am not wounded.”
The news of Ms. Sala’s detention became public about a week later, on Dec. 27, after she received a visit from Italy’s ambassador to Iran. The detention of Ms. Sala dominated media coverage in Italy, and President Sergio Mattarella mentioned her case in his end of year message.
Mr. Raineri said that Ms. Sala’s plane was scheduled to land in Rome on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni of Italy called Ms. Sala’s parents on Wednesday to tell them that she was returning, according to the government statement.
The post Italian Journalist Is Released by Iran, Italy Says appeared first on New York Times.
