Italy releases Iranian citizen held on a US warrant over drone assault in Jordan | EUROtoday

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Italy’s justice minister has requested an appeals court docket to revoke the arrest of an Iranian citizen needed by the U.S. over a drone assault in Jordan that killed three Americans a yr in the past.

Mohammad Abedini was scheduled to look at a Milan court docket on Wednesday in connection together with his bid for home arrest pending the extradition course of to the U.S.

Iranian state TV stated Sunday Abedini will return to Iran “within hours.” The report stated the discharge and return of Abedini got here after Iran’s overseas ministry pursued the case, in addition to “talks” between Iran’s intelligence ministry and the Italian intelligence service.

Abedini was arrested on a U.S. warrant on Dec. 16, three days earlier than Italian journalist Cecilia Sala was detained whereas on a reporting journey to Iran. Sala, who was believed held as a bargaining chip for Abedini’s launch, returned dwelling final week, giving rise to hypothesis about his destiny.

An official observe launched by the Justice Ministry on Sunday stated that beneath Italy-U.S. extradition treaties, “only crimes that are punishable according to the laws of both sides can lead to extradition, a condition which, based on the state of documents, can’t be considered as existing.”

The ministry stated that the potential cost in opposition to Abedini — felony affiliation for violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, a U.S. federal regulation — “did not correspond to any conduct recognized by Italian law as a crime.”

The U.S. Justice Department has accused Abedini of supplying the drone expertise to Iran that was utilized in a January 2024 assault on a U.S. outpost in Jordan that killed three American troops.

Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni described a “diplomatic triangulation” with Iran and the United States as being key to securing Sala’s launch, confirming for the primary time that Washington’s pursuits within the case entered into the negotiations.

Sala’s launch got here after Meloni made a shock journey to Florida to fulfill U.S. President-elect Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago property.

— Nasser Karimi in Tehran contributed to this report.