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Italy Summons Iranian Ambassador, Demands Release of Journalist

Italian journalist Cecilia Sala, who was arrested by police in Tehran, Iran on December 19, 2024, according to Italy's foreign ministry, speaks at the event called "Chora Volume 1" in Milan, Italy February 16, 2024 in this picture released by Chora Media/via REUTERS/File Photo
Italian journalist Cecilia Sala, who was arrested by police in Tehran, Iran on December 19, 2024, according to Italy's foreign ministry, speaks at the event called "Chora Volume 1" in Milan, Italy February 16, 2024 in this picture released by Chora Media/via REUTERS/File Photo
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Italy Summons Iranian Ambassador, Demands Release of Journalist

Italian journalist Cecilia Sala, who was arrested by police in Tehran, Iran on December 19, 2024, according to Italy's foreign ministry, speaks at the event called "Chora Volume 1" in Milan, Italy February 16, 2024 in this picture released by Chora Media/via REUTERS/File Photo
Italian journalist Cecilia Sala, who was arrested by police in Tehran, Iran on December 19, 2024, according to Italy's foreign ministry, speaks at the event called "Chora Volume 1" in Milan, Italy February 16, 2024 in this picture released by Chora Media/via REUTERS/File Photo

Italy's foreign ministry summoned the Iranian ambassador on Thursday to demand the immediate release of reporter Cecilia Sala, who was detained in Tehran on Dec. 19 while working under a regular journalistic visa.

The ministry said in a statement it had relayed "serious concern" over Sala's detention and stressed the need for humane treatment and respect for her human rights.

Italian media have reported that Sala is in solitary confinement in a freezing cold cell with a neon light left on night and day. Her glasses have been confiscated and she has had hardly any contact with the outside world.

The secretary general of the Italian foreign ministry, Riccardo Guariglia, demanded that embassy staff in Tehran should be allowed to visit Sala and provide her with "the comfort items that she has been denied so far", the ministry said, Reuters reported.

Iran's official IRNA news agency reported on Monday that Sala had been arrested for "violating the laws of the Islamic Republic". It gave no further information.

Sala was detained three days after an Iranian businessman, Mohammad Abedini, was arrested at Milan's Malpensa Airport on a US warrant for allegedly supplying drone parts that Washington says were used in a 2023 attack that killed three US service members in Jordan.

Iran has denied involvement in the attack, and its foreign ministry was quoted in Iranian media as saying Abedini's arrest violated international law.

In recent years, Iran's security forces have arrested dozens of foreigners and dual nationals, mostly on charges related to espionage and security. Rights groups have accused Iran of trying to extract concessions from other countries through such arrests. Iran denies this.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is due to discuss Sala's case with her foreign and justice ministers later on Thursday, her office said.

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World

Trump Says Call with Mexican President 'Very Productive'

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum attends a press conference at the National Palace in Mexico City, Mexico January 27, 2026. REUTERS/Henry Romero
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum attends a press conference at the National Palace in Mexico City, Mexico January 27, 2026. REUTERS/Henry Romero
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Trump Says Call with Mexican President 'Very Productive'

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum attends a press conference at the National Palace in Mexico City, Mexico January 27, 2026. REUTERS/Henry Romero
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum attends a press conference at the National Palace in Mexico City, Mexico January 27, 2026. REUTERS/Henry Romero

US President Donald Trump said he had a "very productive" call with his Mexican counterpart Claudia Sheinbaum on Thursday, after tensions over drugs, immigration, tariffs and Mexico's oil exports to Cuba, AFP reported.

"I had a very productive telephone conversation with President Claudia Sheinbaum, of Mexico. It went extremely well for both Countries. Much of it was focused on the Border, stopping Drug Trafficking, and Trade," Trump said on Truth Social.

"We will be speaking again, soon, and ultimately, setting up meetings in our respective Countries. Mexico has a wonderful and highly intelligent Leader -- They should be very happy about that!"

World

EU Sanctions 15 Iranian Officials, Including Top Revolutionary Guard Leaders, Over Brutal Crackdown

European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas speaks with the media as she arrives for a meeting of EU foreign ministers at the European Council building in Brussels, Thursday, Jan. 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)
European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas speaks with the media as she arrives for a meeting of EU foreign ministers at the European Council building in Brussels, Thursday, Jan. 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)
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EU Sanctions 15 Iranian Officials, Including Top Revolutionary Guard Leaders, Over Brutal Crackdown

European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas speaks with the media as she arrives for a meeting of EU foreign ministers at the European Council building in Brussels, Thursday, Jan. 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)
European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas speaks with the media as she arrives for a meeting of EU foreign ministers at the European Council building in Brussels, Thursday, Jan. 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)

The European Union on Thursday announced sanctions on 15 Iranian officials, including top commanders and officials of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, over Tehran's deadly crackdown on nationwide protests.

Six Iranian organizations, including bodies responsible for monitoring online content in Iran, were also included in the sanctions list.

The decision by the 27-nation bloc marks the latest Western response over the violence, which activists say has killed over 6,300 people.

The measures add to international pressure on the Republic as it faced US threats to potentially launch a military strike against it.

US forces have moved the USS Abraham Lincoln and several guided-missile destroyers into the Mideast that can be used to launch attacks from the sea. It remains unclear whether President Donald Trump will use force against Iran, after he threatened military action in response to the killing of peaceful demonstrators and over possible mass executions. At least 6,373 people have been killed in Iran's protests, activists said, The AP news reported.

For its part, Iran has said it could launch a pre-emptive strike or broadly target the Mideast, including American military bases in the region and Israel. Iran issued a warning to ships at sea Thursday that it planned to run a drill next week that would include live firing in the Strait of Hormuz, potentially disrupting traffic through a waterway that sees 20% of all the world's oil pass through it.

The EU’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, said earlier Thursday that Iran's Revolutionary Guard, which has played a key role in suppressing the demonstrations, would also be added to the EU's list of terrorist organizations.

“This will put them on the same footing with al-Qaida, Hamas, ISIS,” Kallas said. “If you act as a terrorist, you should also be treated as a terrorist.”

Iran had no immediate comment, but it has been criticizing Europe in recent days as it considered the move, which follows the US sanctioning the Guard in 2019.

World

Russian Drone Attack Kills 3 in Southern Ukraine as Further US-led Peace Talks Approach

In this image made from video provided by Russian Defense Ministry Press Service on Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, Russian Chief of General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov, third right, arrives to inspect the troops involved in the fighting in Ukraine. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)
In this image made from video provided by Russian Defense Ministry Press Service on Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, Russian Chief of General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov, third right, arrives to inspect the troops involved in the fighting in Ukraine. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)
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Russian Drone Attack Kills 3 in Southern Ukraine as Further US-led Peace Talks Approach

In this image made from video provided by Russian Defense Ministry Press Service on Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, Russian Chief of General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov, third right, arrives to inspect the troops involved in the fighting in Ukraine. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)
In this image made from video provided by Russian Defense Ministry Press Service on Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, Russian Chief of General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov, third right, arrives to inspect the troops involved in the fighting in Ukraine. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)

A Russian drone attack killed three people in Ukraine’s southern Zaporizhzhia region overnight, authorities said Thursday, as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that Moscow is planning another large-scale barrage despite plans for further US-brokered peace talks at the weekend.

The Zaporizhzhia strike caused a major blaze in an apartment building, according to emergency services.

Firefighters also worked through the night to put out fires in the central Dnipropetrovsk region, where two people were injured, officials said.

Zelenskyy said Ukrainian intelligence reports indicate Russia is assembling forces for a major aerial attack. Previous large attacks, sometimes involving more than 800 drones as well as cruise and ballistic missiles, have targeted the Ukrainian power grid, The Associated Press said.

The ongoing attacks discredit the peace talks, Zelenskyy said. “Every single Russian strike does,” he said late Wednesday.

Russia’s daily bombardment of civilian areas behind the roughly 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line has continued despite international condemnation and attempts to end the fighting almost four years after Russia launched its devastating all-out invasion of Ukraine.

Negotiations between the two sides are poised to resume on Sunday amid doubts about Moscow’s commitment to a settlement.

The European Union’s top diplomat accused Russia of not taking the talks seriously, calling Thursday in Brussels for more pressure to be exerted on Moscow to press it into making concessions.

“We see them increasing their attacks on Ukraine because they can’t make moves on the battlefield. So, they are attacking civilians,” Kaja Kallas said of Russia at a meeting of EU foreign ministers.

She stressed that Europe, which sees its own future security at stake in Ukraine, must be fully involved in talks to end the war. The push for a settlement has been led over the past year by the Trump administration, and European leaders fear their concerns may not be taken into account.

The number of soldiers killed, injured or missing on both sides during the war could reach 2 million by spring, with Russia sustaining the largest number of troop deaths for any major power in any conflict since World War II, according to an international think tank report published Tuesday.

Russia launched over 6,000 drones at Ukraine over the past month alone, according to Ukraine’s Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov. Russia is constantly improving its drones and its tactics, he said late Wednesday, prompting Ukraine to shift its air defense strategy, though he gave no details of the changes.