Free Narges Coalition calls to extend the suspension of Narges Mohammadi’s sentences
The Free Narges Coalition has received worrying information regarding the intention to return Narges Mohammadi to prison in Iran. The Steering Committee remains highly concerned about her health condition, and condemns these efforts to re-incarcerate Mohammadi while her recovery is incomplete.
The Nobel laureate, human rights defender, author, and journalist was initially granted a 21-day suspension from her prison sentence following surgery in mid-November, and was transferred home on 4 December 2024. Mohammadi was supposed to return to prison on 25 December, putting her health at significant risk, but chose to remain at home pending a legal appeal of the decision. On 31 December, the Pezeshk Qanouni [the Legal Medicine Organization, a program under Iran's Judicial Branch] reportedly approved the request and forwarded the decision to the prosecutor’s office.
Mohammadi’s doctors recently prescribed an extension of her medical leave for at least six more months to conduct thorough and regular medical examinations, including monitoring the bone lesion which was removed from her leg in November, physiotherapy sessions to recover from the surgery, and specialized cardiac care. Additionally, the medical team overseeing Mohammadi’s health has warned that her return to prison—especially under stressful conditions of detention and without adequate medical facilities—could severely worsen her physical well-being. Since her release in early December, Mohammadi has been targeted by a state-backed disinformation campaign pushing for her to be returned to jail – or even sent to a prison outside Tehran with unhygienic living conditions – in retaliation for her continuous human rights work and writing while in detention.
"Narges Mohammadi’s release was a necessary and positive step in her recovery, and her return to prison at this point would threaten to undermine the progress she had made and could once again put her life at risk. We strongly urge the Iranian authorities to extend Mohammadi’s suspension and allow her to stay home to fully recover and receive needed medical care. Moreover, we continue to call for Mohammadi’s immediate and unconditional release given that she has been unjustly imprisoned for her free expression and human rights work. We stand in solidarity with Mohammadi and continue to advocate for her right to return to her own fight for the human rights of all Iranians.”
Mohammadi, who has been jailed for the majority of the past three years, has suffered from several serious health issues in prison which were exacerbated due to medical neglect and poor prison conditions, including heart and pulmonary concerns. She has been hospitalized several times since the beginning of her current prison term, and has frequently been denied adequate medical care due to her human rights work, writings and communications, and activism—including from inside prison. Over the past year, she has suffered from chronic back and knee pain, including a herniated spinal disc. In November 2024, Mohammadi underwent surgery to remove a bone lesion from her leg that was suspected of being cancerous (a post-surgical biopsy revealed that it was not, but should be monitored regularly).
On 18 November, more than 45 civil society organizations led by the Free Narges Coalition joined together in a letter calling for urgent international support for Mohammadi, urging the UN Human Rights Council and other international stakeholders to call on Iranian authorities to grant Mohammadi a medical furlough on humanitarian grounds. The following week, the new UN Special Rapporteur for Iran, Mai Sato, as well as the UN’s Fact-Finding Mission on Iran raised concern about Mohammadi’s health and urged her release as a humanitarian gesture.
Mohammadi is a human rights defender, journalist, author, and 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 of 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 or to get involved, visit:
www.narges.foundation/freenarges.
Contact the steering committee members:
Narges Foundation, [email protected];
Karin Deutsch Karlekar, PEN America, [email protected];
Jonathan Dagher, 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!
