Italy says Iran has arrested Italian reporter
Italy’s Foreign Ministry says an Italian journalist has been detained in Iran for more than a week.
Cecilia Sala works for Il Foglio newspaper and podcast company Chora Media.
The Foreign Ministry said it was following Ms. Salah’s case with “the utmost attention” after she was detained by Tehran police on December 19.
There was no immediate confirmation of the arrest by Iranian authorities.
Chora Media said in a separate statement that Ms. Sala was being held in solitary confinement in Tehran’s Evin prison and no reason was given for her arrest.
Italy’s Foreign Ministry revealed that Rome’s ambassador to Tehran, Paola Amadei, had met with him to investigate the conditions in which he was being held, adding that he had been allowed to make two phone calls to his family. Was given.
It also said Italy was “working with the Iranian authorities to clarify the legal situation of Cecilia Sala”.
According to Chora Media, Ms. Sala left Rome for Iran on December 12 with a valid journalist visa and gave several interviews while producing three episodes of her “Stories” podcast.
It said she was scheduled to fly back to Rome on 20 December, but her phone went “silent” after exchanging a few messages on 19 December.
Sala’s other employer Il Foglio has demanded his release, saying “journalism is not a crime”.
“Cecilia was in Iran, with a regular visa, to report on a country she knows and loves, a country where information is often stifled due to repression,” the newspaper said in a statement on its website. Is.”
Last week, Iran summoned the Swiss ambassador to Tehran and a senior Italian diplomat over the arrest of two Iranian citizens, Reuters reported, citing Iranian media.
Iran was rocked by protests in 2022 following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in September the same year. Thousands of people were arrested in connection with the “Women, Life, Freedom” protests.
Mahsa was arrested for allegedly breaking Iranian laws that require women to wear hijab and died in police custody.
