(NEW YORK)—Since the violent arrest of Narges Mohammadi by Iranian authorities a week ago, the activist, writer, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, and 2023 PEN/Barbey Freedom to Write Awardee is still behind bars and her family and lawyers have been denied basic information about her health or well-being. PEN America calls on the government to release her and demands she is given medical care and legal representation.
“The arrest and treatment of writer Narges Mohammadi is an unbearable violation of her rights,” said PEN America’s interim co-CEO and chief of Free Expression Programs, Summer Lopez. “She is in custody simply for expressing dissent and speaking up for human rights and against state repression. Since her violent arrest, her family and lawyers have been kept in the dark about her health, which has worsened with each unjust detention over decades of persecution.”
“Mohammadi’s arrest is the latest example of the Iranian government’s crackdown on independent voices. It should embolden all of us who believe in free expression to speak even louder in defense of all writers and other people at risk for raising their voices in dissent,” added Lopez. “We demand the Iranian government unconditionally release Mohammadi, alongside the other activists, journalists, and writers detained for their free expression, and grant them access to proper medical care and legal representation.”
On December 12, 2025, PEN America, as part of the Free Narges Coalition Steering Committee, condemned Iranian authorities’ detention of Mohammadi, in addition to dozens of other human rights defenders and participants at the memorial ceremony of the late lawyer Khosrow Alikordi, including writer and activist Sepideh Gholian. In the days since her arrest, Mohammadi has been taken to the hospital twice and was allowed a brief phone call to her brother in Iran on December 14. Mohammadi and the other detained activists are being held in solitary confinement, with almost no contact to either their families or lawyers; on December 17, Mohammadi’s brother in Iran issued a letter calling for her to receive medical care.
In PEN America’s 2024 Freedom to Write Index, Iran ranked in second place globally, jailing a total of 43 writers during the year. In November, Iranian authorities arrested six writers, researchers, and translators known for their scholarship; they were released from custody but still face charges. More information on PEN America’s work on Iran is available here.
About PEN America
PEN America stands at the intersection of literature and human rights to protect free expression in the United States and worldwide. We champion the freedom to write, recognizing the power of the word to transform the world. Our mission is to unite writers and their allies to celebrate creative expression and defend the liberties that make it possible. Learn more at pen.org.