The family of the Iranian Nobel laureate Narges Mohammadi, who is being held in prison, have called for her to be released on medical grounds, warning her life is in “imminent danger”.
They say Ms Mohammadi, 54, has dangerously high blood pressure, has lost almost 20kg in weight and was found unconscious in her cell in Zanjan Prison last month after a suspected heart attack.
Her daughter Kiana Rahmani said medical neglect has pushed her mother “to the brink of death”. She added: “Neither my mother nor any prisoner of conscience should ever be deprived of the fundamental right to health.”
The Narges Foundation, which Ms Rahmani founded, issued an urgent appeal after the refusal by the Tehran prosecutor to grant a one-month suspension of her mother's sentence based on the critical need for specialised cardiac medical attention.
The family say Ms Mohammadi needs treatment which is not available in Zanjan city, let alone the prison. A specialist had warned that holding her in prison under pressure and stress was extremely dangerous.
The human rights activist has for decades campaigned for democracy in Iran, and against discrimination and oppression of women. She has been arrested more than a dozen times, sentenced to 44 years in prison and 154 lashes, and has spent more than a decade behind bars during her life. She was imprisoned in 2021 but released for health reasons in 2024. She was re-arrested in December 2025 at a memorial service for a fellow activist. She was sentenced to a seven and a half years in prison.
Her brother, Hamidreza Mohammadi, who lives in Oslo, said the family feels “sheer devastation” at the situation and he wakes every day fearing news of her death.
“This is no longer just imprisonment; it is a slow-motion death,” he said. “Every time Narges calls to our family members from Zanjan Prison, she is weaker, thinner and closer to the edge.
“They are literally watching her life fade away and doing nothing. We are beyond furious. By refusing her the specialised care she needs and blocking her from her own doctors, they are basically killing her.
“We have zero trust in some random, state-appointed prison doctor who knows nothing of her complex medical history. My sister has sacrificed everything for her country and now she is being systematically destroyed. This must stop now.”
Ms Mohammadi’s legal team has spent weeks lobbying unsuccessfully for her to be granted leave. After a meeting with her inside Zanjan Prison on April 28, they described her condition as having reached a “critical point”.
Her French lawyer, Chirinne Ardakani, said: “By denying life-saving medical care to Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi, the Islamic Republic of Iran is sending a clear signal to the international community: dissenting voices must be silenced, even through a slow death.”
The Narges Foundation called on the international community of UN, international human rights bodies, feminists, lawyers, journalists and human rights defenders to “demand the immediate transfer of Narges Mohammadi to a specialised hospital, where she can be under care of her own medical team who know her background, for urgent cardiac care, and immediate and unconditional release of her and all prisoners of conscience held in Iran in violation of principle of dignity and freedom of speech and opinion.”
