Narges Mohammadi, an Iranian Nobel Peace Prize laureate, has been released from a cardiac care unit and returned home after being moved from prison to the hospital due to a suspected heart attack. The announcement was made by a foundation managed by her family on Monday.
Mohammadi, aged 54, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2023 while serving time in prison for her advocacy for women’s rights and the abolition of the death penalty in Iran. Earlier this year, she was handed a new prison sentence as tensions escalated between the U.S., Israel, and Iran.
Following a suspected heart attack in late March, Mohammadi was first taken to a hospital in Zanjan and later to Tehran’s Pars Hospital after her sentence was temporarily halted upon posting a substantial bail amount. Her daughter, Kiana Rahmani, emphasized the necessity for Mohammadi to be under close medical observation outside of prison, highlighting that a return to detention would pose a severe threat to her life.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comments, and state media outlets did not cover the situation. Mohammadi, whose arrests have drawn global attention, was detained last December after criticizing the death of lawyer Khosrow Alikordi at a memorial service, during which she allegedly made inflammatory statements, as per a prosecutor’s remarks.
The Nobel committee had previously urged Tehran to release Mohammadi promptly. According to her family’s foundation, Mohammadi was initially hospitalized at Mousavi Hospital in Zanjan from May 1st to May 10th and later transferred to Pars Hospital in Tehran from May 10th to May 17th after spending 150 days in custody following her arrest in Mashhad.
