Jailed Nobel Laureate Narges Mohammadi Hospitalized After Health Deteriorates in Zanjan Prison

Iranian human rights activist and 2023 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi was transferred from prison to a hospital after her health deteriorated sharply, with multiple outlets citing episodes of complete loss of consciousness and a severe cardiac crisis.

“Iranian human rights activist and 2023 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi has been transferred from prison to a hospital due to a sharp decline in her health”

Al Jazeera

Al Jazeera reported that Mohammadi was moved because of “a sharp decline in her health,” and said her foundation described the transfer as “an unavoidable necessity after prison doctors determined her condition could not be managed on-site.”

Al Jazeera

The Narges Mohammadi Foundation said the transfer was made after prison doctors concluded her condition could no longer be managed inside the prison, and Al Jazeera added that earlier on Friday she fainted twice in prison in Zanjan in northwestern Iran.

DW similarly said Mohammadi was taken to hospital after her health deteriorated suddenly in prison, and it quoted her lawyer Mostafa Nili saying, “She had severe chest pain, and her condition then deteriorated critically.”

France 24 reported that she was moved on Friday after suffering a heart attack and experiencing two episodes of “complete” unconsciousness, and it described the transfer as “following a catastrophic deterioration of her health.”

NPR said she was moved from prison to intensive care Friday at a hospital in the city of Zanjan, a provincial capital northwest of Tehran, and it characterized her condition as “catastrophic deterioration.”

Across the reports, the foundation and lawyers framed the transfer as urgent, while family members and supporters described it as potentially too late, with PBS citing the foundation’s line that the transfer came “after 140 days of systematic medical neglect.”

The accounts of Mohammadi’s medical situation emphasized both cardiac symptoms and the clinical debate over where she should be treated.

Iran International said she was transferred from Zanjan Prison to a hospital on Friday after losing consciousness twice and suffering a “severe deterioration in her health,” and it reported that she was admitted to the coronary care unit, according to her lawyer Mostafa Nili.

Asre nou

It also described blood pressure fluctuations, acute chest pain, and repeated episodes of severe distress, and said she first fainted after a sudden drop in blood pressure and was given IV fluids and anti-nausea medication in the prison clinic.

Iran International added that Mohammadi initially declined transfer to a Zanjan hospital, citing warnings from two cardiologists that her history of “three angiographies and stent placement” made treatment in Zanjan dangerous and required care by her own medical team.

It said a neurologist then ordered urgent hospitalization, stating that her neurological condition had become the immediate clinical priority despite her serious cardiac issues.

NDTV similarly said her health was at “very high risk,” and it reported that Iran’s Intelligence Ministry opposed the transfer to Tehran for treatment by her own doctors, including for angiography.

France 24 described the transfer as a “last-minute action” that could prove too late, and it quoted the foundation’s statement that the move was “a ‘last-minute’ action that could prove too late.”

PBS added that the foundation said the transfer was “a desperate, ‘last-minute’ action that may be too late to address her critical needs,” and it reported that Mohammadi’s brother Hamidreza Mohammadi said, “My family in Iran is doing everything they can. But the prosecutors in Zanjan are blocking everything.”

Multiple reports placed the hospitalization within a longer imprisonment timeline that included earlier sentences, additional prison terms, and repeated claims of mistreatment.

Al Jazeera said Mohammadi, 53, has been imprisoned since December 12 after she was arrested during a visit to the eastern Iranian city of Mashhad, and it said in February she was sentenced to more than seven years in prison.

It reported that her lawyer said six years of that sentence was for the accusation of “gathering and collusion to commit crimes,” and it said her family alleged worsening health in part because of an alleged beating during her arrest in December.

Al Jazeera quoted the family’s allegation that “multiple men hit and kicked her in her side, head and neck,” and it said the Nobel committee condemned the “ongoing life-threatening mistreatment” of Mohammadi in a statement in February.

DW said Mohammadi, 54, suffered a heart attack in late March and has been in a weakened state since then, with medical care in prison inadequate to her needs, and it said she is currently facing a new prison term of 7 1/2 years.

France 24 said she was arrested in December in Iran’s eastern city of Mashhad after speaking out against the country’s clerical authorities at a funeral ceremony, and it described her as a Nobel peace prize winner in 2023 for more than two decades of rights campaigning.

PBS said Mohammadi was arrested in December during a visit to Mashhad and sentenced to seven more years in prison, and it added that she was arrested on Dec. 12 and had already been serving a sentence of 13 years and nine months on charges of collusion against state security and propaganda against Iran’s government before being released on furlough since late 2024 over medical concerns.

Iran International said Mohammadi was re-arrested on December 12, 2025, and sentenced on February 8, 2026, to an additional seven and a half years, bringing her cumulative sentence to more than 18 years.

The hospitalization triggered appeals from family members, lawyers, and international bodies, with multiple outlets quoting direct statements.

France 24 reported that in Oslo the Norwegian Nobel Committee urged Iranian authorities “to immediately transfer Narges Mohammadi to her dedicated medical team in Tehran,” and it quoted committee chair Jorgen Watne Frydnes saying, “Her life remains at risk,” and “Her life is now in the hands of the Iranian authorities.”

Devdiscourse

PBS similarly quoted the foundation’s framing of the transfer as “an unavoidable necessity” after prison doctors determined her condition could not be managed on-site, and it said her brother Hamidreza Mohammadi told the Associated Press that “My family in Iran is doing everything they can. But the prosecutors in Zanjan are blocking everything.”

NPR said Mohammadi’s foundation and family requested transfer to specialist care in Tehran, but it reported that authorities refused to allow her to be moved, and it described the foundation’s statement that the transfer came after “catastrophic deterioration.”

NDTV quoted her husband Taghi Rahmani in a voice message shared with the Associated Press by the foundation, saying, “The Ministry of Intelligence wouldn't even mind if (she) died,” and it also included a quote from the Norwegian Nobel Committee urging immediate transfer.

DW quoted her lawyer Mostafa Nili on X, saying, “She had severe chest pain, and her condition then deteriorated critically,” and it said the Narges Mohammadi Foundation described the transfer as “following a catastrophic deterioration” and “a desperate, last-minute” measure.

Iran International added that Mohammadi’s family described the hospital transfer as a “last-minute” step that may have come too late, and it said specialists had recommended transfer to Pars Hospital in Tehran.

The reporting framed the immediate next steps around whether Mohammadi would receive specialized treatment in Tehran and how authorities would respond to medical recommendations.

Iran International said specialists recommended transfer to Pars Hospital in Tehran, where her own medical team could treat her, and it described the family’s view that the transfer to Zanjan was “last-minute” and may have come too late.

DW

PBS said the transfer came after prison doctors determined her condition could not be managed on-site, and it reported that her family had advocated for transfer to adequate medical facilities for weeks, while quoting the foundation’s “desperate, ‘last-minute’ action” warning.

NPR said her family and lawyer requested transfer to specialist care in Tehran upon her medical team’s advice, but it reported that authorities refused to allow her to be moved, and it described her as in critical condition.

France 24 said the Norwegian Nobel Committee urged immediate transfer to Tehran and warned that “Without such treatment, her life remains at risk,” and it quoted Jorgen Watne Frydnes saying, “Her life is now in the hands of the Iranian authorities.”

DW reported that Mohammadi’s family called for all charges against her “to be dropped immediately and for all sentences imposed for her peaceful human rights work to be unconditionally annulled,” and it tied that demand to her broader imprisonment history.

Al Jazeera reported that Mohammadi had been arrested during a visit to Mashhad and that the Nobel committee condemned “ongoing life-threatening mistreatment,” while also noting the Iranian government had not commented on the alleged attack.