The 3o-year-old Italian food and travel blogger Alessia Piperno, who was taken into custody in Iran in late September, has been released from Iran’s notorious Evin prison, Italy’s prime minister Giorgia Meloni announced Thursday. The Italian had been traveling in Iran without a valid visa and was blogging about the civil rights protests in the country when friends say she was taken into custody during a raid shortly after celebrating her 30th birthday. “After intense diplomatic efforts, today Alessia Piperno was released by Iranian authorities and is preparing to return to Italy,” Meloni’s office said.