ROME (AP) — Italy on Sunday launched an Iranian citizen wished by the U.S. over a drone assault in Jordan that killed three People a 12 months in the past, after the Italian justice minister requested a court docket to revoke his arrest.
Mohammad Abedini has already returned to Iran, Iranian state TV mentioned on Sunday afternoon.
He was scheduled to look at a Milan court docket on Wednesday in connection together with his bid for home arrest pending extradition to the U.S.
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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 residence final week.
The U.S. Justice Division has accused Abedini of supplying the drone know-how to Iran that was utilized in a January 2024 attack on a U.S. outpost in Jordan that killed three American troops.
An official observe on the case launched by the Italian Justice Ministry on Sunday mentioned that below Italy-U.S. extradition treaties, “solely crimes which are punishable in response to the legal guidelines of either side can result in extradition, a situation which, primarily based on the state of paperwork, can’t be thought-about as present.”
The ministry mentioned that the potential cost in opposition to Abedini — prison affiliation for violating the Worldwide Emergency Financial Powers Act, a U.S. federal regulation — “didn’t correspond to any conduct acknowledged by Italian regulation as against the law.”
Iranian state TV mentioned 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.
Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni described a “diplomatic triangulation” with Iran and the USA as being key to securing Sala’s launch, confirming for the primary time that Washington’s pursuits entered into the negotiations.
Sala’s launch got here after Meloni made a surprise trip to Florida to fulfill U.S. President-elect Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago property.
——— Nasser Karimi in Tehran contributed to this report.
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