Iran confirmed the arrest of Italian journalist Cecilia Sala, state news agency IRNA said citing the Iranian Ministry of Culture.

Cecilia Sala could be used as "political leverage" after an Iranian citizen was detained by Italy, a US state department spokesman has said.

Iran's state media say an Italian journalist has been arrested on charges of violating the Islamic Republic's laws.

The case of an Italian journalist being held in Iran is "complicated", but Rome hopes to bring 29-year-old Cecilia Sala home quickly, Italy's foreign minister said on Saturday.

Cecilia Sala, 29, was arrested on Dec. 19, but news of her detention only became public on Friday. The reason for the arrest of Ms. Sala, a well-known reporter, has not been made public.

Italy’s prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, has pledged to free Italian journalist, Cecilia Sala, who was detained in Iran.

Efforts to release Italian journalist Cecilia Sala from prison in Iran are "complicated," Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said Saturday. Sala was detained on December 19 by police in Tehran and is being held in the city's notorious Evin prison,

A Swiss-Iranian businessman arrested in Milan on a US terror warrant three days before journalist Cecilia Sala was arrested for allegedly breaking Islamic law in Tehran filed for house arrest Monday as he fights an American extradition request.