Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi was rushed to a hospital in Zanjan after suffering serious health complications in prison. Given the seriousness of his condition, both his family and the Nobel Committee demand his immediate release so that he can receive adequate medical care.

First modification: 05/02/2026 - 21:05 Last modification: 05/02/2026 - 21:17

Activist Narges Mohammadi's life is in danger. This was explained by Joergen Watne Frydnes, the president of the Nobel Peace Prize Committee, to the Reuters agency on Saturday, May 2, indicating a “serious deterioration” in his state of health.

"She is imprisoned solely for her peaceful human rights work. Her life is now in the hands of the Iranian authorities," said Joergen Watne Frydnes.

According to the Narges Mohammadi foundation, managed by her family, the activist fainted on Friday, May 1, after several days of high blood pressure and intense nausea.

“The activist was rushed today to a hospital in Zanjan after a catastrophic deterioration in her health, which included two episodes of total loss of consciousness and a serious cardiac crisis,” the Foundation said in a statement published on its website on Friday.

“This transfer was carried out due to an unavoidable need after prison doctors determined that her condition could not be treated in the penitentiary center, despite current medical recommendations that she be treated by their specialized team in Tehran,” the foundation added.

On Saturday, no further details were known about the activist's current state of health.

His family fights for his life

For several weeks now, the activist's family had requested her transfer to an appropriate medical center. According to Mostafa Nili, Mohammadi's lawyer, the authorities rejected the request that she be transferred to the capital.

The decision to transfer her to the hospital this Friday is “a last-minute desperate act, which could come too late to meet her critical needs,” denounced the family, cited by the foundation.

Mohammadi, 54, has chronic heart problems and has already suffered a pulmonary embolism. However, the authorities have often refused to transfer her to a hospital and have treated her in the prison clinic.

“We demand the immediate withdrawal of all charges and the unconditional annulment of all sentences handed down against her for her peaceful work in defense of human rights,” the foundation requested.

Repeated violations of your rights

Narges Mohammadi is one of Iran's most prominent human rights activists. In 2023, she won the Nobel Peace Prize while imprisoned for her activities in favor of women's rights and the abolition of the death penalty in her country.

According to Amnesty International, he is currently serving a sentence of 12 years, 11 months and 154 lashes (among other sanctions) after trials in which, on occasions, he has not even been able to count on his lawyer. In addition, on February 8 she was sentenced to seven and a half years for charges such as "assembly, conspiracy and propaganda. "All sentences are the consequence of her activism in favor of human rights."

The organization denounces ill-treatment and torture by the Iranian authorities, which have greatly worsened already fragile health.

"During her time in prison, the Iranian authorities have subjected her to torture and other ill-treatment, as well as denying her contact with her family or lawyers. They have also deliberately denied or greatly delayed access to appropriate medical care for her chest pains, severe headaches, nausea, vomiting, double vision, fainting and blood pressure complications," describes Amnesty International.

The deterioration of the activist's health comes at a particularly sensitive time for Iran. The country has suffered an internet blackout by the authorities since February 28, after the United States and Israel began their war against Tehran.

The power of the Islamic Republic, greatly weakened after the death of former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and many other members of the leadership, also faced a social protest movement at the end of December 2025, which it violently repressed, leaving tens of thousands dead according to human rights organizations.

In this context, a possible death of Mohammadi could act as the catalyst for a new social outbreak in the country.

With Reuters and local media

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