Cecilia Sala, 29, who works for Il Foglio and Chora Media, was arrested in Tehran on December 19, authorities said.
According to the Italian Foreign Ministry, an Italian journalist has been arrested by police in Iran and the government is making efforts to bring her home.
Cecilia Sala, 29, was arrested by police in Tehran on December 19, officials said, but her arrest was not made public until Friday. She works for the newspaper Il Foglio and for the podcast company Chora Media.
Italy’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation said in a statement that it was “working with the Iranian authorities to clarify Cecilia Sala’s legal situation and review the conditions of her detention.”
“The Italian Embassy and Consulate in Tehran have followed the case with the greatest attention from the beginning,” the ministry added.
Defense Minister Guido Crosetto – a key figure in Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government – said on social media platform X that the arrest was “unacceptable.”
“Italy is working tirelessly to free them and is pursuing every option,” he said.
There was no immediate confirmation of the arrest from Iranian officials.
#FreeCecilia pic.twitter.com/idnzNW3oAJ
— Chora Media (@Chora_Media) December 27, 2024
Sala has been able to make two telephone calls since her arrest and detention in Tehran’s Evin prison, the Italian Foreign Ministry said.
Chora Media said in a separate statement that Sala was being held in solitary confinement in Evin and that no reason had been given for her arrest.
“Your free voice has been silenced and neither Italy nor Europe can tolerate this arbitrary arrest. Cecilia Sala must be released immediately,” Chora said.
According to Chora, Sala left Rome for Iran on December 12 with a valid journalist visa and “the protection of a journalist on assignment.” Sala conducted several interviews and produced three episodes of her podcast “Stories,” it said. She was due to fly back to Rome on December 20th.
It was not clear whether Sala’s case may be related to tensions between Rome and Tehran after Iran last week summoned a senior Italian diplomat and the Swiss ambassador, who represents U.S. interests in the country, over the arrest of two Iranian nationals. One of the men was arrested in Italy at Washington’s request.
The Italian ambassador to Iran visited Sala in prison on Friday and the journalist was also in contact with her family by telephone, the Italian Foreign Ministry said.
Italian sources with knowledge of the matter said she was “very tired” but “physically fine,” Reuters news agency reported.
Chora said news of Sala’s arrest was not made public immediately because her family and Italian authorities had hoped that silence might help secure her quick release.
Elly Schlein, leader of the center-left opposition Democratic Party, called on the government to act quickly.
“We immediately call on the government to take every meaningful initiative to shed light on this matter, clarify the reasons for this detention and, above all, return Cecilia Sala to Italy as quickly as possible,” she said.
