An Italian journalist, Cecilia Sala, was arrested by Iranian police in Tehran on December 19, the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced in a press release on Friday.
Rome says it is following the case with the “greatest attention”, adding “to collaborate with the Iranian authorities to clarify the legal situation of Cecilia Sala and verify the conditions of her detention”.
Aged 29, Cecilia Sala works for the Italian daily Il Foglio and for the podcast agency Chora Media.
In a separate statement, Chora Media said Cecilia Sala was placed in solitary confinement in Evin prison and the reason for her arrest was not specified.
The Iranian authorities have not yet confirmed the journalist’s arrest.
It is unclear whether this affair is linked to the current tensions between Rome and Tehran. Iran last week summoned an Italian diplomat and the Swiss ambassador, who represents American interests in the country, over the arrest of two Iranian nationals, one of whom was arrested in Italy at the request of Washington.
According to Chora Media, Cecilia Sala left Rome for Iran on December 12 with a valid journalist visa to conduct several interviews there, as well as produce three episodes of her podcast “Stories.”
She was due to fly back to Rome on December 20.
The Italian ambassador to Iran visited Cecilia Sala in prison on Friday, the Italian Foreign Ministry and Chora Media said. The journalist was also in telephone contact with her family, they added.
According to Chora Media, Cecilia Sala’s family and the Italian authorities hoped for a rapid release of the journalist while keeping her arrest secret.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs urged the media to exercise “maximum discretion” on this issue, while Chora Media set up the hashtag #FreeCecilia on social networks.
“Her free voice has been silenced, and neither Italy nor Europe can tolerate this arbitrary arrest. Cecilia Sala must be released immediately,” writes Chora Media.
(Reporting by Alvise Armellini and Angelo Amante, French version by Claude Chendjou, edited by Sophie Louet)
