Eighty-five Nobel laureates have issued a joint statement demanding the unconditional release of Narges Mohammadi and all political prisoners in Iran, according to a news release published on the X account of Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi on 13 March.
This statement, also published in full by the Narges Mohammadi Foundation, highlights mounting international support for her cause. As Iranian pressure mounts on Mohammadi to return to prison from temporary release on medical grounds, Nobel laureates from various fields worldwide have taken a powerful stand. In a unified statement, at least 85 Nobel Prize winners are demanding her full and unconditional release — herself recipient of the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize — along with all other political prisoners in Iran.
Highlighting Mohammadi’s status as the fifth person to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize while in prison, the statement says:
Narges Mohammadi left Tehran’s notorious Evin prison on temporary medical release in December 2024. We have united at this moment because her freedom remains tenuous and can be revoked at any time. We call for her temporary release to become permanent. Her resilience ignites a global call to action, reminding us that the pursuit of justice and freedom knows no borders.
The Nobel laureates also condemned the imprisonment of tesn of thousands of human rights defenders, opposition politicians, artists, journalists and other outspoken critics of the Iranian regime, while highlighting Mohammadi’s pivotal role in the struggle for justice:
Her tireless fight for justice embodies the spirit of resistance against tyranny. Her struggle is not hers alone—it is a shared fight for every woman, every political prisoner, and every soul who dares to stand against oppression.
In closing, the laureates reaffirmed their support for all political prisoners under the Islamic Republic of Iran, calling for global solidarity:
We stand with Narges Mohammadi and with all those unjustly imprisoned for daring to envision a more just and equitable Iran, and we call on the international community to rise in solidarity and amplify the rallying cry that reverberates across Iran: “Women, Life, Freedom.
For her relentless fight against the death penalty and human rights in Iran, Narges Mohammadi has been honoured with numerous international awards, including the Nobel Peace Prize, the UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize, and the Reporters Without Borders Award for Courage.
To date, she has endured over a decade behind bars, with Iran’s judiciary sentencing her to more than 36 years in prison, 154 lashes and other inhumane punishments, including 135 days in solitary confinement. She is currently on temporary medical release, yet her freedom remains precarious.
