The Free Narges Coalition condemns the additional six-month prison sentence issued against detained Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi, demands her immediate and unconditional release, and calls again for her to be granted urgent access to essential medical treatment, which was again denied this week.
The Free Narges Coalition Steering Committee said: “The Islamic Republic has repeatedly denied medical care to Narges Mohammadi, even as her health has deteriorated alarmingly while in prolonged detention, and new sentences continue to be added in reprisal for her persistence in speaking out from inside prison. We again demand her unconditional release, but in the short term, it is critical that she be granted medical furlough for the essential medical interventions recommended by her doctors to be provided without delay. We urge the international diplomatic community to make this a priority in all negotiations with the Iranian government, insisting on a firm commitment for Mohammadi’s release. This vital diplomatic intervention is not just necessary; it could save her life. Given the Iranian government’s abysmal record of arbitrary medical neglect of political prisoners in the recent past, we hold authorities responsible for Mohammadi’s well-being.”
On 19 October 2024, Mohammadi was sentenced to an additional six months in prison on the charge of “disobeying and resisting orders” by Branch 2 of Qods Criminal Court. This charge was brought against Mohammadi and four other inmates after their protest against the execution of a protestor was responded to violently by riot police in the women’s ward of Evin Prison on 6 August.
Mohammadi’s current period of incarceration started in November 2021, following her sentencing in May 2021. Cumulatively, adding further cases brought against her in January and October 2022, as well as January, June, and October 2024, she has now been sentenced to 13 years and nine months in prison, as well as 154 lashes on trumped-up charges, including “propaganda against the state” and “acting against national security.”
Additionally, Mohammadi’s health situation has deteriorated drastically during her long incarceration. Most recently, in early October Mohammadi’s family expressed serious concerns regarding systematic refusals by Evin prison officials to transfer her to a hospital for appointments to carry out an angiography on three separate occasions on 10 and 17 September, and on 1 October. This intervention was prescribed by her cardiologist on 19 March 2024.
A medical report issued on 16 September highlighted a number of worrying developments. Mohammadi’s angiography revealed that the main artery of her heart, which had been stented in 2021 due to a 75-percent blockage, has again developed a serious complication. Despite repeated requests from her specialist for another angiography, and confirmation of the urgency of an angiography by the cardiologist approved by the Iranian Organization of Prisons, who visited Mohammadi on 8 October, the procedure has not yet been carried out. On the evening of 8 October, the head of Evin prison visited Mohammadi in the women’s ward and informed her that the Iranian Organization of Prisons does not have authority at Evin prison to decide about her situation, including her medical transfer, and that the decisions are made at higher levels, without mentioning the names of the authorities responsible for such decisions.
Last year in November 2023, Mohammadi was bed-bound due to acute back and knee pain, when she was transferred to hospital. According to the medical specialists and MRI and CT scan examinations, she needed 10 sessions of physiotherapy and other regular treatment, which has been communicated to the Evin prison authorities three times; however, treatment has so far been denied. Mohammadi also needs to be visited by an ophthalmologist as she has been suffering from eye pain during the nights and episodic blurry vision. Authorities’ withholding of the essential urgent medical treatment from Mohammadi–which is part of a systematic pattern of arbitrary medical neglect of political prisoners in the recent past, including human rights defenders, journalists, and writers–displays a callous disregard for her health and wellbeing under detention.
Additionally, Mohammadi’s contact with her family and legal counsel continues to be fully cut off. Her meetings with her lawyer have been denied since October 2022 for many months due to her refusal to wear a headscarf, and she has effectively been cut off from phone contact with her relatives inside Iran since 29 November 2023.
Narges Mohammadi is a woman human rights defender, journalist, author, and formerly deputy director and spokesperson of the Defenders of Human Rights Centre (DHRC) in Iran. Mohammadi has spent more than 10 years of her life in prison, with her current period of detention starting in November 2021. She is currently serving sentences totalling 13 years and nine months in prison, on charges including committing “propaganda activity against the state” and “collusion against state security.” She is the recipient of numerous international awards for her tireless struggle for human rights, including the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize, the 2023 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize, the 2023 PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Award, and the 2022 Reporters Without Borders Prize for Courage.
This statement is issued by the Free Narges Coalition steering committee, and does not necessarily reflect the position of all Coalition members. The steering committee is led by the Narges Foundation, PEN America, Reporters Without Borders (RSF), and Front Line Defenders.
For more information, to get involved, or to support visit: www.narges.foundation/freenarges
Contact the steering committee members: Narges Foundation [email protected]; Karin Deutsch Karlekar, PEN America [email protected]; Rebecca Vincent, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) [email protected]; and Front Line Defenders [email protected].
Join us in calling for the immediate and unconditional release of Narges Mohammadi. #FreeNarges!