Jailed Nobel Laureate Narges Mohammadi Urgently Transferred From Prison to Hospital in Zanjan

Iran’s imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi was urgently transferred from prison to a hospital in northwestern Iran after a “catastrophic deterioration” of her health, her foundation said Friday. The Narges Mohammadi Foundation said she had “two episodes of complete loss of consciousness and a severe cardiac crisis,” and that she was moved to a hospital in Zanjan. A Reuters report cited by Al-Monitor said she was in a critical condition in a cardiac care unit in northwestern Iran on Sunday, two days after she was brought to hospital from prison. Her supporters and family also said she suffered a suspected heart attack in late March and was hospitalized on May 1 as her condition rapidly worsened.

Mohammadi’s Paris-based lawyer Chirinne Ardakani told supporters she was “between life and death,” adding, “We are not just fighting for Narges’s freedom; we are fighting so that her heart continues to beat.” France 24 reported that Ardakani said Mohammadi was hospitalised under guard for the last five days with a heart condition, and that supporters said she was “between life and death” on May 5. Reuters, via Al-Monitor, said the foundation argued that “Effective treatment for Narges Mohammadi’s conditions is only possible if she is transferred to her medical team in Tehran,” while her supporters said there was no sign she had been moved from Zanjan. The BBC reported that her brother Hamidreza Mohammadi feared she was dying and said prison officials refused to transfer her despite a history of cardiac, lung and blood pressure problems.

As Mohammadi’s health crisis deepened, the Narges Mohammadi Foundation said judicial authorities were blocking her transfer for specialized cardiac care, even after forensic medicine confirmation, and it described the deprivation as “a blatant violation of the inherent dignity of human beings.” In a statement cited by Iran International, the foundation warned that “the voices of critics must be silenced, even if it costs a slow death,” and said two cardiology subspecialists in Zanjan examined her and concluded her treatment could not be provided there. IranWire reported that Mike Waltz, the United States Ambassador to the United Nations, urged action in a statement: “Get her to her doctors; release her now.” The BBC also reported that Jorgen Watne Frydnes, head of the Nobel Peace Prize committee, told Reuters that Mohammadi’s life was at risk, while noting that Iranian authorities had not publicly responded to the accusations.