May 8, 2026, 6:57 am05/08/2026, 08:57
The USA is calling on Iran to immediately release the seriously ill Iranian human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi from prison. The imprisoned 54-year-old must receive the necessary treatment, the world is watching, wrote Riley Barnes, the top official responsible for human rights at the US State Department on the platform X. “She is now in critical condition and is receiving completely inadequate medical care,” he added. On Tuesday, Mohammadi’s supporters said she was “floating between life and death.”
“The Iranian regime imprisoned Mohammadi because she raised her voice – because she spoke on behalf of the Iranian people and their hopes for a better life,” Barnes continued.
The Iranian regime jailed Narges Mohammadi for using her voice – for speaking on behalf of the Iranian people and their aspirations for a better life. She is now in critical condition and receiving wholly inadequate care. We call on the Iranian regime to release her now…
— Assistant Secretary Riley Barnes (@StateDRL) May 7, 2026
The activist was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2023 for her work against the oppression of women and against the death penalty in Iran. She is being held in the central prison in the city of Sanjan in northwestern Iran and is currently being treated in a hospital. According to those close to her, Mohammadi was transferred to an intensive care unit because of acute heart problems.
At the beginning of February, according to her lawyer, the human rights activist was again sentenced to several years in prison for alleged conspiracy and propaganda activities. They are also banned from leaving the country for two years. (sda/dpa)