Cecilia Sala has been freed; European Commission satisfied

Brussels – In the late morning of Wednesday, January 8, the plane that will bring home Italian journalist Cecilia Sala, detained in the Evin prison since December 19, took off from Tehran. Following the announcement by Palazzo Chigi, the European Commission also expressed “great satisfaction” through the words of chief spokeswoman Paula Pinho, for what is “really very good news.”

In a statement, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni stressed the “intensive work on diplomatic and intelligence channels” necessary for Sala’s release and expressed gratitude “to all those who helped make Cecilia’s return possible, allowing her to re-embrace her family and colleagues.” The premier personally informed the journalist’s parents during a phone call.

The Foglio and Chora Media reporter was imprisoned in Iran despite having been granted a journalistic visa by the Islamic Republic, with her fate unfortunately tied to the simultaneous arrest at Malpensa Airport, at the request of the United States, of Iranian citizen Mohammad Abedini. In the days following her arrest, the harsh detention conditions imposed on the 29-year-old woman from Rome gradually emerged, held in solitary confinement and deprived of comfort items sent to her by the Italian embassy in Tehran.

The plane bringing Cecilia Sala home from Tehran is in the air.
Thanks to intensive work on diplomatic and intelligence channels, our compatriot has been released by the Iranian authorities and is returning to Italy. I have personally informed the journalist’s parents…

– Giorgia Meloni (@GiorgiaMeloni) January 8, 2025

“Diplomacy and teamwork,” said with satisfaction Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, who coordinated the negotiations with Iranian authorities during these nineteen days of detention. From Brussels, Camilla Laureti, MEP of the Democratic Party and vice president of the Socialist Group (S&D), spoke on the happy ending of the affair: “Welcome back Cecilia Sala, a brave and passionate journalist. Thanks to everyone who worked to achieve this result,” Laureti said on X.

 “Free at last,” French liberal Sandro Gozi exulted. Ilaria Salis, an AVS MEP who remained in pre-trial detention for over a year in Hungary, recalled that “many other people remain unjustly imprisoned in jails halfway around the world, from Iran to Palestine to our country.” For Carlo Fidanza, head of Fratelli d’Italia’s delegation to the European Parliament, the journalist’s return to Italy is “an extraordinary result achieved thanks to Giorgia Meloni’s perseverance and determination and tireless diplomatic effort.” In a statement, the European delegation of the 5 Star Movement thanked “the authorities who made her release possible” and addressed Sala: “Keep doing your job with your head held high and without fear.”