An Italian journalist, Cecilia Sala, has been detained in Iran for more than a week under unclear circumstances, sparking widespread international condemnation and allegations of “hostage diplomacy” by the Iranian regime. Sala, a 29-year-old reporter for the Italian daily Il Foglio and the podcast company Chora Media was arrested on December 19 in Tehran while reporting with a valid journalist visa.
Sala is currently held in solitary confinement in Tehran’s notorious Evin Prison. Italian officials, including Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, have called her detention “unacceptable” and confirmed that Sala is in good health following a consular visit by Italy’s ambassador to Iran, Paola Amadei.
The state-run Asr Iran reported on October 28 that Iranian officials have yet to respond to the arrest of the Italian reporter. According to the source, the Italian police arrested Mohammad Abedini Najafabadi, 38, at Milan Airport at the request of the U.S., while Mehdi Mohammadsadeghi, 42, was detained in Massachusetts. According to Tasnim News Agency, their arrests are linked to a January 28, 2024, drone attack in Jordan by Iraqi armed groups that killed three U.S. soldiers and injured 47 others. The FBI alleges the two supplied equipment used in the attack.
Sala’s arrest has drawn sharp criticism from human rights organizations, including Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ). Both have labeled the detention arbitrary and demanded her immediate release. RSF noted, “Sala entered Iran with a valid visa and has been detained without any legitimate justification.”
Observers have raised concerns that her arrest may be linked to the regime’s ongoing diplomatic tensions with Italy. Just days before Sala’s detention, Italian authorities arrested an Iranian national, Mohammad Abedini, on charges of transferring sensitive drone technology to Iran, allegedly violating international sanctions. Analysts speculate that Sala’s detention could be an attempt by Tehran to pressure Italy to halt Abedini’s extradition to the United States.
THREAD
For more than four decades, the clerical regime in #Iran has consistently blackmailed other nations and considered #extremism as "leverage". 1/9https://t.co/ieaaOkZb6y pic.twitter.com/W9u5BJHXqs— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) September 6, 2022
The arrest has drawn comparisons to Iran’s long-standing practice of using foreign detainees as leverage in negotiations with Western countries. Anthony Bellanger, Secretary General of the IFJ, condemned the tactic, saying, “We deplore Iran’s tactics of imprisoning foreign journalists in order to get something in return. Our Italian colleague Cecilia Sala, who was in the country on assignment, is the latest victim of this macabre practice. We call on the international community to put pressure on the Iranian authorities to release the journalist immediately.”
This form of hostage diplomacy is not new. Recent examples include the 2023 prisoner swap where Tehran released Belgian aid worker Olivier Vandecasteele in exchange for Assadollah Assadi, a convicted terrorist serving a 20-year sentence in Belgium for plotting the 2018 bomb attack on an NCRI’s annual rally in France. Similarly, in 2024, the regime secured the release of Hamid Noury, a violator of grave human rights convicted in Sweden for his role in the mass execution of thousands of political prisoners in 1988. Noury was exchanged for Johan Floderus, a Swedish diplomat, and Saeed Azizi, a dual Iranian-Swedish national.
Italy’s Foreign Ministry has assured the public of its continued efforts to secure Sala’s release. While Iranian authorities have yet to provide an official explanation for her arrest, Italy is pressing Tehran for answers. Sala’s family has only been able to communicate with her twice since her detention.
The #Iranian regime aired an interview with Asadollah Assadi, its convicted diplomat #terrorist, who was jailed in Belgium for a foiled 2018 bomb plot in Paris. This move seeks to bolster its hostage-taking diplomacy for both domestic and international audiences. pic.twitter.com/SIhC5faqkK
— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) August 6, 2024
This incident comes at a time when the Iranian regime faces mounting internal dissent and regional instability. Sala’s most recent article examined the implications for Iran’s leadership following the decline of Bashar al-Assad, Tehran’s key ally in Syria.
Sala’s arrest highlights the Iranian regime’s worsening human rights record and its reliance on repressive tactics to counteract international pressure. The timing and circumstances of her detention suggest an escalation in the clerical regime’s use of foreign nationals as bargaining chips in diplomatic standoffs, particularly as Tehran faces increased sanctions and isolation.
The decades-long policy of hostage-taking and terror by the clerical dictatorship serves as yet another grim reminder of its inherently oppressive and destabilizing nature. The regime remains a threat not only to the people of Iran, who endure its repressive rule, but also to foreign citizens who risk becoming pawns in its political maneuvers.