Italian reporter Cecilia Sala described her conditions while being held at Iran's Evin prison, including being blindfolded during hours of interrogations, left in a cell with bloodstains on the walls, and interrogated by a guard with "flawless English" who knew Italy well, during an interview with the New York Times in Rome on Saturday.
Sala was arrested in Tehran on December 19 while working under a journalist visa before being released on January 8.
Sala stated that she traveled to Iran for the first time since 2021 in order to "see with my eyes what has changed" before Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) intelligence agents came to her hotel room, prevented her from picking up her mobile phone, blindfolded her, and took her to Evin prison, where Iran allegedly tortures political prisoners.
After asking what she was accused of, Sala was told she was told she committed "many illegal actions in many places," according to the New York Times report.
The report adds that she was provided with a prison uniform, including a hijab and a chador, a full-body length garment often worn by Iranian women to follow modesty requirements. They also seized her glasses, removing her ability to see clearly.
The cell had two blankets, no mattress or pillows, and the light was constantly on, causing sleep deprivation.
Sala said that after several days, she was able to discover blood stains left on the wall in parallel marks, likely from a previous inmate marking days spent in the cell and the word "freedom" written in Farsi, according to the report.
Her interrogator reportedly was well informed on Italian culture, asking her whether she preferred Roman or Neapolitan-style pizza crust while speaking in "flawless" English.
Sala was reportedly allowed to communicate with her family in Italy periodically, but after her mother told reporters about the prison conditions that Sala was forced to suffer, her interrogator told her that because of these remarks, she would be imprisoned for much longer than previously intended.
Sala stated that the interrogator's "game is to give you hope and then use your hope to break you."
Sala heard crying, vomiting, footsteps, and banging against the walls and doors coming from other cells. She stated that she was fearful that if they kept her imprisoned for long, she would "also end up like this" and "would come back an animal, not a person."
Was she part of a prisoner exchange?
Sala's arrest came after Italy detained Mohammad Abedini, an Iranian businessman wanted on a US warrant for allegedly supplying drone parts that Washington says were used in an attack that killed three US service members in Jordan.
Sala stated during the interview that she feared she was "trapped in a game much bigger than I was" due to fears that her arrest was linked with pressuring Italy to release Abedini, given the precedent of Iranian authorities detaining foreign and dual citizens as hostages to use as leverage while pressuring other countries in disputes.
Sala claimed she was fearful that if the US insisted on extraditing Abedini from Italy, she would linger in Evin prison for years.
Ho la fotografia più bella della mia vita, ilcuore pieno di gratitudine, in testa quelli che alzando lo sguardo non possono ancora vedere il cielo. Non ho mai pensato, in questi 21 giorni, che sarei stata a casa oggi. Grazie pic.twitter.com/wD2T4Ut3Vo
— Cecilia Sala (@ceciliasala) January 9, 2025
Iranian authorities stated on December 25 that they expected “the Italian government to prevent the violation of the human rights of the Iranian citizen who has been unjustly accused by the United States,” according to a different New York Times report.
Iran denies both the involvement in the attack on the US service members and that Sala's imprisonment was to pressure Rome to release Abedini, according to Reuters.
Abedini was originally scheduled for a hearing on January 15, according to the second New York Times report, but the Italian Justice Minister signed a request revoking Abedini's arrest on January 12.
Elon Musk claims involvement
Elon Musk says to have helped secure Sala's release by reaching out to Iran's ambassador to the UN, Amir Saeid Iravani, according to two Iranian officials quoted by the New York Times on Wednesday.
I played a small role
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 16, 2025
Musk replied to a tweet on Thursday asking if it is true that he played a "key role" by stating, "I played a small role."
Italian authorities, including Prime Minister Georgia Meloni, stated that she was "not aware" of any role Musk played, according to a New York Times report on Musk's role.
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Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani told SkyTG24 that "Musk ... has nothing to do with Cecilia Sala's case. He played no role. The case was settled by the Italian government," according to Reuters.
Meanwhile, a senior Biden administration official stated that Washington had not been consulted about negotiations between Iran, Italy, and any other parties, nor had they been given advance word about the releases, according to The New York Times.
The official added that the Biden administration disapproved of the deal, and NYT quoted National Security Council spokesman John Kirby as stating the deal had been "an Italian decision from soup to nuts.”