Iran arrests Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi, supporters say
[December 13, 2025]
By JON GAMBRELL
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran has arrested Nobel Peace Prize
laureate Narges Mohammadi, her supporters said Friday.
A foundation in her name said she was detained in Mashhad, some 680
kilometers (420 miles) northeast of the capital, Tehran, while attending
a memorial for a human rights lawyer recently found dead under unclear
circumstances.
A local official reportedly acknowledged arrests had been made, but did
not directly name Mohammadi, 53. It wasn't clear if authorities would
immediately return her to prison, where she had been serving a sentence
until her temporary release in December 2024 for medical purposes.
However, her detention comes as Iran has been cracking down on
intellectuals and others as Tehran struggles with sanctions, an ailing
economy and the fear of a renewed war with Israel. Arresting Mohammadi
may spark increased pressure from the West at a time when Iran
repeatedly signals it wants new negotiations with the United States over
its nuclear program — something that has yet to happen.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee said it was “deeply concerned” by
Mohammadi's arrest.
The committee “calls on the Iranian authorities to immediately clarify
Mohammadi’s whereabouts, ensure her safety and integrity, and to release
her without conditions,” it said in a statement.
Activist detained at ceremony for dead lawyer
Her supporters on Friday described her as having been “violently
detained earlier today by security and police forces.” They said other
activists had been arrested as well at a ceremony honoring Khosrow
Alikordi, a 46-year-old Iranian lawyer and human rights advocate who had
been based in Mashhad.
“The Narges Foundation calls for the immediate and unconditional release
of all detained individuals who were attending a memorial ceremony to
pay their respects and demonstrate solidarity,” a statement read. “Their
arrest constitutes a serious violation of fundamental freedoms.”
Alikordi was found dead earlier this month in his office, with
provincial officials in describing his death as a heart attack. However,
a tightening security crackdown coincided with his death, raising
questions. Over 80 lawyers signed a statement demanding more
information.
"What we witnessed today is the Islamic Republic’s latest assault on the
most basic human freedoms — where even mourning a slain lawyer becomes a
punishable act,” said Hadi Ghaemi, the executive director of the New
York-based Center for Human Rights in Iran.
“When peaceful citizens cannot mourn without being beaten and dragged
away, it reveals a government terrified of truth and accountability. It
also reveals the extraordinary bravery of Iranians who refuse to
surrender their dignity."
Footage purportedly of the ceremony showed Mohammadi with a microphone,
calling out to the crowd gathered without wearing a hijab, or headscarf.
She started the crowd chanting the name Majidreza Rahnavard, a man whom
authorities hanged from a crane in a public execution in 2022.
Footage published by her foundation also showed her without a hijab,
surrounded by a large crowd.
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Prominent Iranian human rights activist Narges Mohammadi is
seen in a meeting on women's rights in Tehran, Iran, on July 3,
2008. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi, File)
Hasan Hosseini, the city governor of Mashhad, said prosecutors
ordered security officials to temporarily detain a number of
participants at the ceremony after the chanting of “norm-breaking”
slogans, Iranian state television reported.
Hosseini described the detentions as preventive to protect those
there from others in the crowd, but did not address claims that
security forces used violence in making the arrests.
Other anti-government chants could be heard in purported video
footage of the event.
Mohammadi had been on furlough for months
Supporters had warned for months that Mohammadi was at risk of being
put back into prison after she received a furlough in December 2024
over medical concerns.
While that was to be only three weeks, Mohammadi’s time out of
prison lengthened, possibly as activists and Western powers pushed
Iran to keep her free. She remained out even during the 12-day war
in June between Iran and Israel.
Mohammadi still kept up her activism with public protests and
international media appearances, including even demonstrating at one
point in front of Tehran’s notorious Evin prison, where she had been
held.
Mohammadi had been serving 13 years and nine months on charges of
collusion against state security and propaganda against Iran’s
government. She also had backed the nationwide protests sparked by
the 2022 death of Mahsa Amini, which have seen women openly defy the
government by not wearing the hijab.
Mohammadi suffered multiple heart attacks while imprisoned before
undergoing emergency surgery in 2022, her supporters say. Her lawyer
in late 2024 revealed doctors had found a bone lesion that they
feared could be cancerous that later was removed.
“Mohammadi’s doctors recently prescribed an extension of her medical
leave for at least six more months to conduct thorough and regular
medical examinations, including monitoring the bone lesion which was
removed from her leg in November, physiotherapy sessions to recover
from the surgery and specialized cardiac care,” the Free Narges
Coalition said in late February 2025.
“The medical team overseeing Mohammadi’s health has warned that her
return to prison — especially under stressful conditions of
detention and without adequate medical facilities — could severely
worsen her physical well-being.”
An engineer by training, Mohammadi has been imprisoned 13 times and
convicted five. In total, she has been sentenced to over 30 years in
prison. Her last incarceration began when she was detained in 2021
after attending a memorial for a person killed in nationwide
protests.
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