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Iran confirms arrest of Italian journalist Cecilia Sala

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Iran confirms arrest of Italian journalist Cecilia Sala
December 30, 2024
Article Body Text Iran on Monday confirmed that it is detaining the Italian journalist Cecilia Sala in the country’s capital, Tehran. Sala is accused of "violating the laws of the Islamic Republic," according to the Iranian state-run news agency IRNA.   The journalist, who contributes to the Italian newspaper Il Foglio and the podcast “Stories” on Chora Media, was in Iran on a journalism visa, when authorities detained her on December 19. Sala, 29, is being held in Tehran’s Evin prison and has been allowed to call her family. She received at least one consular visit, a week after she was first detained, according to media reports. Details of Sala’s arrest were not made public until December 27. Her detention came just a few days after Italy arrested a Swiss-Iranian national in Milan at the request of the U.S. Businessman Mohammad Abedininajafabadi, known as Abedini, is accused of breaking sanctions and with providing support to a foreign terrorist organization that led to the deaths of three U.S. service members killed in a drone attack in Jordan, according to the U.S. Justice Department website. Italy’s foreign minister, Antonio Tajani, on Saturday declined to say whether Iran’s arrest of Sala could be in retaliation for the detention of Abedini.  Sala’s case is "complicated," but Rome hopes to bring her home quickly, Tajani said. He added that the journalist is being held in a single cell. <a href="https://www.voanews.com/a/efforts-to-free-reporter-held-in-iran-complicated-says-italy/7917176.html"><figure><img src="https://gdb.voanews.com/d650f352-948b-40f2-ad41-dea41fe39072_w1600_r0_n_s.jpg" /></figure></a><a href="https://www.voanews.com/a/efforts-to-free-reporter-held-in-iran-complicated-says-italy/7917176.html">Efforts to free reporter held in Iran 'complicated,' says Italy</a> A U.S. State Department spokesperson told the Italian newspaper la Repubblica that they believe Sala’s arrest is likely a response to the detention of Najafabadi. Iran “continues to unjustly detain citizens of many other countries, often using them as political leverage,” the spokesperson said. “There is no justification for this, and they should be released immediately.” The office of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said the leader was "following the complex affair" closely and pursuing "all possible avenues of dialogue" to release Sala. The journalist’s media outlet, Chora Media, on Friday confirmed that Sala had left Rome for Iran on December 12 with a valid journalist visa. While in Iran, she interviewed people and produced three episodes of her podcast series “Stories.” The alarm was raised when the journalist stopped communicating on December 19 and then failed to board her return flight to Rome. Sala was later able to call her mother and let her know she had been arrested, according to a statement by Chora Media. The statement added that Sala has been “taken to Evin prison, where dissidents are held.” Sala had been in Iran "to report on a country she knows and loves," the statement read. The free expression group PEN Ukraine in a statement said that Sala had traveled to Iran to report on how a new law on hijabs is affecting women. It added that Sala had previously reported on Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, including from the frontline in the east, Kherson and Chernihiv. Her reporting on the war was turned into a book, "L’incendio", published in 2023. “Sala is a powerful voice to spread the truth about Russian aggression against Ukraine in [the] Italian media environment,” PEN Ukraine said. As well as her coverage in Ukraine, Sala has reported on the fall of Kabul in Afghanistan, and on Venezuela. The Coalition for Women in Journalism on social media urged authorities to release Sala. “We recognize this case as not only an unfair detention of a journalist but also that of transnational repression,” the media rights group said. The Committee to Protect Journalists or CPJ described the arrest as concerning. “Iran has a long and ignominious history of detaining journalists — both local and foreign — for reporting the realities of life in the country,” CPJ’s chief executive Jodie Ginsberg said in a statement. Iran is the sixth worst jailer of journalists globally, according to CPJ data. Some information is from the AFP and Reuters.
Content Type Text
Language English
NewsML Media Topics Arts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
Subtitles / Dubbing Available No
Network VOA
Embargo Date December 30, 2024 07:49 EST
Byline VOA News
Brand / Language Service Voice of America - English