Italy’s foreign ministry revealed that Rome’s ambassador to Tehran, Paolo Amadei, had visited her to check on her detention conditions, adding that she had been allowed to make two phone calls to her family.
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 podcast, Histories.
It added that she was due to fly back to Rome on December 20, but her phone “went silent” after she exchanged several messages on December 19.
Sal’s other employer, Il Foglio, called for her release, saying “journalism is not a crime”.
“Cecilia was in Iran on a regular visa to report on a country she knows and loves, a country where information is stifled by repression,” the newspaper said in a statement on its website.
Last week, Iran summoned Switzerland’s ambassador to Tehran and a high-ranking Italian diplomat in connection with 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 of that year. Tens of thousands of people were arrested in connection with the “Women, Life, Freedom” protest actions.
Mahsa was arrested for allegedly violating Iranian laws requiring women to wear the hijab, and died in police custody.
