Nobel Peace laureate and women’s rights activist Narges Mohammadi was transferred to a Tehran hospital more than a week after collapsing in prison, her foundation said Sunday, following days of pleas from her family and others who described her condition as critical. The foundation said her sentence was suspended on bail, but it also argued that the step was not sufficient and that she needed specialized medical care outside custody.
Mohammadi had been imprisoned since December in Zanjan prison. Her family said her health had been deteriorating in custody, including episodes of losing consciousness twice and being transferred to a local hospital on May 1 after she collapsed.
The foundation said it had received notice that Mohammadi’s prison sentence was suspended on bail, though it did not indicate how long the suspension would last. In a statement shared with The Associated Press, the foundation said the suspension was “not enough” and that Mohammadi needed “permanent, specialized care.”
In the same statement, the foundation said it was seeking a long-term change in Mohammadi’s situation, saying, “we must ensure she never returns to prison to face the 18 years remaining on her sentence. Now is the time to demand her unconditional freedom and the dismissal of all charges.” The foundation did not provide additional details about what prompted the transfer order beyond Mohammadi’s medical condition.
Mohammadi’s Iran-based lawyer Mostafa Nili said on social media that the transfer order was issued after the Legal Medicine Organization—described as government-appointed medical examiners—concluded that, due to her multiple illnesses, she needed to continue treatment outside prison and under the supervision of her own medical team.
Mohammadi’s brother Hamidreza Mohammadi, who is based in Oslo, said in earlier comments that medical examiners had recommended her transfer to Tehran but that the decision had been blocked. In a message to AP, he said, “I’m relieved now. I can breathe lightly.”
The Associated Press reported that Mohammadi, 53, had been jailed repeatedly throughout her career and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2023 while imprisoned. Her most recent imprisonment began after she was arrested in the northeastern Iranian city of Mashhad.
Mohammadi’s family said she suffered a heart attack in March and has had a blood clot in her lung since before her imprisonment that requires blood thinners and monitoring. They also said that since she was moved to the Zanjan hospital’s cardiac care unit, her blood pressure had been swinging between extremely low and extremely high, and that she was receiving oxygen to breathe and could not talk.
The Nobel committee had previously urged Iranian authorities to transfer Mohammadi to her dedicated medical team in Tehran, saying that “without such treatment, her life remains at risk.” There was no immediate comment from Iranian authorities on the reported transfer.