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December 27, 2024 – Iran –
29‑year‑old Italian journalist Cecilia Sala traveled to Tehran on a valid press visa. Her mission was to report for Il Foglio and the podcast Stories (Chora Media), covering topics ranging from the Taliban’s return to Kabul to Iran’s internal social dynamics. However, on 19 December, just a day before she was scheduled to depart, Sala was arrested by Iranian authorities. Her detention was only acknowledged on 27 December, when Italy’s foreign ministry disclosed that she was being held in Evin Prison under suspicion of “violating Iranian law”.
Evin Prison, notorious for political prisoners and foreign detainees, holds a reputation for abuse and coercive interrogations. Sala spent nine days in solitary confinement, enduring harsh conditions that included sleeping on the floor without a mattress, lacking glasses, and being subjected to constant neon lighting. She described grueling ten‑hour interrogations while hooded and facing a wall—an experience alternating between intimidation and false rewards.
Italian diplomatic efforts were swift. Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani summoned Iran’s ambassador, and Ambassador Paola Amadei secured two phone calls and a consular visit to assure Sala’s health and safety. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni personally oversaw negotiations, which reportedly prompted Iran to propose a prisoner swap involving Sala and Swiss-Iranian engineer Mohammad Abedini Najafabadi, arrested in Italy for alleged drone sanctions violations.
On 8 January 2025, Sala was released and returned to Rome—her case seen as a diplomatic victory. Authorities granted her swift exit alongside the exchange of Abedini, freed on 12 January. While relieved, advocacy groups including CPJ, RSF, IFJ, and the Press Freedom Center stressed her ordeal reveals a disturbing pattern: Iran frequently detains foreign journalists in Evin as geopolitical leverage.
Her detention, lack of due process, and harsh treatment underscore Iran’s disturbing use of press freedom as a diplomatic tool. Rights organizations warn that this tactic chills reporting about Iran and endangers foreign and domestic journalists alike. Sala’s release marks a positive outcome, but the international community must push for broader reforms, not only for her but for the dozens of journalists still held or persecuted in Iran’s prisons.
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