Reports Link Arrest of Italian Journalist in Iran to Detention of Abedini in Italy

Some media outlets, citing a spokesperson for the U.S. State Department, report that the arrest of Cecilia Sala, an Italian journalist, by the Iranian government was in retaliation for the detention of Mohammad Abedini Najafabadi, an Iranian-Swiss citizen, by Italy. The Italian newspaper 'La Repubblica' reported on Sunday that the arrest of this journalist is Iran's revenge for the arrest of Abedini Najafabadi, who was detained at the request of the United States on charges of being connected to the deadly drone attack on February 8 of last year against a U.S. military base in Jordan at Milan Airport. The U.S. State Department spokesperson expressed regret over the continued unjust detention of citizens from many countries by the Islamic Republic to use them as 'political bargaining chips,' stating that this practice has no justification and all of them should be released immediately. According to him, 'Journalists often perform the vital task of informing the public under dangerous conditions and must be protected.' Last Monday, Mohammad Abedini Najafabadi, 38, was arrested in Milan, and Mehdi Mohammadi, a 42-year-old dual Iranian-American citizen, was arrested in Massachusetts on charges related to the deadly drone attack on U.S. troops in Jordan on February 8 of last year. Abedini Najafabadi, who owns a company in Iran that has ties to the government and the Revolutionary Guards, obtained an American-made component through Mehdi Mohammadi, who worked at the manufacturing company of that component, via a shell company in Europe. Mohammadi and Abedini Najafabadi are accused of violating export controls, and Abedini Najafabadi is separately accused of conspiracy to provide material support to the Iranian government. Prosecutors stated that Mohammadi could face 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a million-dollar fine if convicted. Abedini Najafabadi could face life imprisonment if convicted. During the drone attack on February 8 of last year, three American soldiers were killed and 47 others were wounded. President Joe Biden at the time held Iranian-affiliated militants responsible for this drone attack against American forces. The Italian Foreign Ministry on Saturday, January 8, expressed hope that Cecilia Sala would return to her country as soon as possible, referring to the 'complex' nature of her case. Antonio Tajani, the Italian Foreign Minister, expressed hope for Sala's swift release, adding that this matter does not depend on Italy. He stated that Ms. Sala is being held in a single cell and under appropriate conditions, and Italy is monitoring her situation. Mr. Tajani added that it seems she has been treated with respect so far, and no negative news has been heard regarding her situation. The Italian Foreign Minister further stated that no official reason for Cecilia Sala's arrest has been announced yet, and he hopes that the journalist's lawyer will soon meet with her to obtain more information. The Islamic Republic of Iran has not yet provided an official comment regarding the arrest of this Italian journalist. Antonio Tajani refrained from commenting on the possibility of linking the arrest of this Italian citizen to the detention of Mohammad Abedini, an Iranian citizen suspected of being connected to the deadly drone attack on the U.S. military base in Jordan on February 8 of last year. Additionally, the office of Giorgia Meloni, the Prime Minister of Italy, announced that Ms. Meloni is closely following Cecilia Sala's case and all efforts are focused on bringing this journalist back to Italy. Ms. Sala left Italy for Tehran on December 13 with a valid journalism visa and was supposed to return to her country on December 21. Although this 29-year-old journalist has been detained in Tehran since December 20 and is currently in Evin Prison, news of her arrest became public on Friday, January 7. A few days before her arrest in Tehran, she emphasized in one of her reports that Iranian women no longer adhere to the hijab and are no longer afraid of the police. This journalist stated in her report: 'Many women in Iran no longer comply with the hijab laws of the Islamic Republic and are not afraid of their images being captured by me or by Chinese-made smart cameras that scan faces and report to the police.' In another of her reports, she scrutinized the Israeli fighter jets' attack on Iran on October 26 and the presence of 'Masoud Pezeshkian' at the head of the government. Cecilia Sala stated in part of her report: 'Tehran is now facing many changes. For the first time in its history, the capital of Iran has been bombed by Israeli fighter jets. The Prime Minister of Israel continues to publish videos in which he directly speaks to the people of Iran and declares that the Islamic Republic will not last as long as many believe.' Foreign journalists present in Iran are required to report their news and images according to the considerations of the Islamic Republic's security agencies and the restrictive guidelines of the Ministry of Culture to their media outlets and must remain in contact and coordination with security agencies throughout their activities in Iran. The Instagram page of this journalist, which has more than 407,000 followers, indicates that she has traveled to Iran in previous years and shared photos and reports from the 'Women, Life, Freedom' protests and some of the injured from it. Many political experts and human rights activists say that the Islamic Republic uses baseless accusations to detain foreign citizens, especially dual nationals, and uses them as political bargaining tools, effectively taking these citizens hostage. In this context, Shirin Ebadi, head of the Defenders of Human Rights Center and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, emphasized on Saturday regarding the arrest of Cecilia Sala: 'If there is no fundamental change in the approach of Western countries towards the Islamic Republic, Ms. Sala will not be the last hostage.' Ms. Ebadi stated on her Instagram page that 'hostage-taking and extortion is an ancient tradition of the Islamic Republic that has been going on for years,' adding that the Italian government, which 'had hidden this illegal detention and thought it could free its citizen through dialogue and negotiation, finally concluded that it needed to make this news public.' Italy has called for the immediate release of Cecilia Sala, the detained journalist in Iran.