An Italian journalist detained in Iran for three weeks has been freed and has returned home, after her fate had become intertwined with that of an Iranian engineer arrested in Italy and wanted by the United States.

An Italian journalist detained in Iran has been freed and is heading back to Italy, prime minister Giorgia Meloni has announced. A plane carrying Cecilia Sala, 29, took off from Tehran after “intensive work on diplomatic and intelligence channels”, a statement said.

An Italian journalist detained in Iran for three weeks was freed Wednesday and returned home, after her fate had become intertwined with that of an Iranian engineer arrested in Italy and wanted by the United States.

ROME—Iran released Italian journalist Cecilia Sala, whose arrest in Tehran last month had sparked fears of a lengthy hostage crisis—a win for Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni that however highlights Western countries’ vulnerability to blackmail by authoritarian regimes.

Italian journalist Cecilia Sala, freed after three weeks in Iranian detention, returned to Rome, and greeted by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. Her release, tied to a US-wanted Iranian engineer, marked a major political win for Meloni.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni surprised on Sunday her allies, both local and regional, after her plane landed at Miami International Airport from where she headed to the Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida,

Iran wsa believed to have held Sala as a bargaining chip after an Iranian businessman was arrested in Italy on a U.S. warrant.

Italian journalist Cecilia Sala was freed by Iran on Wednesday and returned home, three weeks after she was detained in Tehran during a reporting trip.

Italian journalist Cecilia Sala had an emotional reunion with her boyfriend and her parents when she arrived in Italy after being released from detention in Iran. She was also welcomed back by Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni.

A plane carrying the 29-year-old landed at Rome’s Ciampino airport on Wednesday. Her overjoyed parents and partner were on hand to welcome her back, as were the prime minister, the foreign minister, and the mayor of Rome.