Iranian Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi requires urgent medical care while serving a nearly 14-year prison sentence, as rights groups petition the UN Human Rights Council for her immediate release on humanitarian grounds.
The journalist and human rights defender underwent surgery on 14 November to remove a potentially cancerous bone lesion from her leg. Despite her doctor’s advice, prison authorities returned her to Evin Prison after just two days.
“Years of imprisonment and months of solitary confinement have severely compromised Mohammadi’s health, leaving her with multiple serious conditions that cannot be addressed through a short, incomplete hospital visit,” the Free Narges Coalition and partner organisations stated in their joint letter.
Mohammadi, who won the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize, has been imprisoned since November 2021 on charges including “propaganda activity against the state” and “collusion against state security”. She previously suffered multiple heart attacks in 2022, requiring emergency surgery.
The coalition of more than 40 organisations, including Reporters Without Borders (RSF), warns that Mohammadi’s case reflects a broader pattern of medical neglect of prisoners in Iran. They cited the death of poet Baktash Abtin in January 2022 after delays in medical care.
“Prison authorities’ withholding of essential urgent medical treatment from Mohammadi displays a callous disregard for her health and wellbeing under detention,” the letter highlighted.
The organisations are calling for Mohammadi’s unconditional release and, in the interim, immediate medical furlough. They urge the UN Human Rights Council to ensure Iran implements its previous commitment to provide adequate healthcare for all individuals in custody.
