Iranian Businessman Released from Italian Custody
Iranian businessman Mohammad Abedini, who was detained in Italy at the request of the United States following a drone attack that killed three Americans, has been released. Abedini, 38, was arrested in Milan in December on a warrant issued by the US and charged in connection with a drone strike that killed three US Army soldiers and injured dozens more in Jordan last year.
The US Justice Department had charged Abedini and Mahdi Mohammad Sadeghi, 42, with conspiring to export the drone technology from the US to Iran. However, Italy’s Justice Minister Carlo Nordio requested the cancellation of Abedini’s arrest, citing that Italy could not extradite him to the US because “only crimes punishable under the laws of both countries” could lead to extradition.
Abedini’s lawyer, Alfredo De Francesco, said the decision “happily surprised us” and that he had argued from the outset that there were no conditions for extradition. “Now my client is a free person and will be able to smile and hope again,” De Francesco said.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry confirmed that Abedini had returned home since his release earlier Sunday. Abedini’s arrest was reportedly the result of a “misunderstanding,” which various Iranian ministries had resolved.
The release comes after Italian journalist Cecilia Sala was freed and returned home last week, leading to speculation about whether she was used as a bargaining chip for Abedini’s release. Sala was detained while on a reporting trip to Tehran and accused of “violating the laws of the Islamic republic of Iran.”