Abedini says he will pray for Cecilia Sala, himself

Appeals court to examine request for house arrest on Jan. 15

By: ansa.it

Jan 03 2025
0
4127 Views

Abedini says he will pray for

Iranian engineer Mohammad Abedini Najafabadi on Friday morning told his attorney Alfredo De Francesco during a meeting at Milan's Opera prison that he will pray for Italian journalist Cecilia Sala, held at Tehran's Evin prison, and for himself.
    Sala was arrested on generic charges of breaking Islamic laws in the Iranian capital on December 19, three days after Abedini was picked up at Milan's Malpensa Aiport on US charges of allegedly supplying drone parts used to kill three servicemen in Jordan a year ago.
    "I will pray for her and for myself", Abedini told his attorney during the meeting.
    The Iranian engineer reiterated his concern for his family and also asked for information on the case regarding Sala, a 29-year-old Il Foglio freelance correspondent and Chora News podcaster.
    An appeals court in Milan has scheduled a hearing on January 15 to discuss the request presented by Abedini's attorney to place him under house arrest.
    On Thursday, Milan's prosecutor general issued a non-binding negative opinion on releasing Abedini to house arrest.
    A document delivered by US judicial officials to the appeals court in Milan in charge of the case says the engineer is a dangerous individual and must remain in prison.
    The four-page document was delivered through diplomatic channels to the Italian judges a few days after the arrest of the 38-year-old on December 16, before his defence attorney asked the court to grant him house arrest.
    Tehran has requested the release of Abedini and it is suspected that Sala is being held as a possible pawn for a potential prisoner exchange.