Authorities in Iran have reportedly detained 2023 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi in a manner described as “violent.” Her detention is said to have taken place at a memorial ceremony for a lawyer and human rights advocate, her supporters state.
Details of the Arrest
Mohammadi, who was granted temporary leave from prison on medical grounds in December 2024, was arrested alongside several other activists at the ceremony for Khosro Alikordi. Alikordi was found dead in his office the previous week. Her Paris-based husband, Taghi Rahmani, stated the arrest occurred in the city in the east of Mashhad. A fellow prominent activist, Sepideh Gholian, was also reportedly detained at the same event.
There has been no immediate comment from Iranian authorities regarding the arrest of the 53-year-old Mohammadi. Advocates had cautioned for months that she was at danger of being sent back to jail. It is currently unclear if she will be sent back to complete the rest of her sentence.
Background to the Memorial Ceremony
The ceremony was for Khosro Alikordi, who was found dead earlier this month. Authorities from Razavi Khorasan province described his death as a heart attack. However, his death coincided with a tightening security crackdown, which has led to speculation. More than eighty lawyers have issued a demand calling for more information.
“Alikordi was a prominent figure among Iran’s community of human rights defenders,” said a New York-based human rights organization. “Over the past several years, he had been repeatedly arrested, subjected to intimidation by security and judicial forces|state authorities.”
The Activist's Recent Actions and Health Struggles
Footage purportedly from the ceremony showed Mohammadi at a microphone, addressing the assembly without a hijab or headscarf. She reportedly led chants of the name Majidreza Rahnavard, a man executed publicly by authorities in 2022.
Prior to her release last December, Mohammadi had been incarcerated from November 2021 on convictions stemming from her campaigning against capital punishment and Iran’s mandatory hijab law.
Her supporters state she suffered multiple heart attacks while imprisoned and underwent an urgent operation in 2022. In late 2024, her lawyer revealed doctors had discovered a bone lesion feared to be malignant, which was subsequently excised.
A History of Imprisonment and Advocacy
Mohammadi’s sentence was supposed to be three-week suspension, but her time out of prison was extended, possibly due to pressure from activists and western powers. She stayed free even during the 12-day war between Iran and Israel in June.
She maintained her advocacy through public protests and interviews with global press, including a demonstration in front of Tehran’s infamous Evin prison, where she had been previously held.
An engineer by training, Mohammadi has been imprisoned 13 times and convicted five times. In total, she has been given over 30 years in prison.
