Narges Mohammadi’s Health Collapses in Prison; Family Fears Death Sentence

Key facts

• Narges Mohammadi, 53, has lost consciousness twice and suffered a severe cardiac crisis.
• She was transferred to a hospital from Zanjan prison after prison doctors deemed her condition unmanageable.
• Mohammadi has lost over 19 kg (44 lb) and has a complex cardiac history including multiple angioplasties.
• She was re-arrested in December 2025 during a memorial service and sentenced to an additional seven and a half years in February 2026.
• Her legal team had been seeking a one-month medical suspension of her sentence.
• The Nobel committee condemned the 'ongoing life-threatening mistreatment' of Mohammadi in February.
• Mohammadi has spent more than a decade behind bars, including 161 days in solitary confinement.

Lede: A Sharp Decline

Narges Mohammadi, the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize laureate and Iranian human rights activist, has been transferred from prison to a hospital after suffering two episodes of complete loss of consciousness and a severe cardiac crisis, her foundation announced on Friday. The transfer was described as an unavoidable necessity after prison doctors determined her condition could not be managed on-site, despite standing medical recommendations that she be treated by her specialized team in Tehran.

The Medical Crisis

Earlier on Friday, Mohammadi fainted twice in Zanjan prison in northwestern Iran, according to the Narges Mohammadi Foundation. She was believed to have suffered a heart attack in late March, according to her lawyers, who visited her a few days after the incident and found her pale, underweight, and needing a nurse to help her walk. for the past three days, her blood pressure has fluctuated dangerously, showing no response to medication, and she has suffered a staggering weight loss of more than 19 kg (44 lb) along with enduring, recurring pain.

Family and Legal Team’s Pleas

Mohammadi’s legal team had been trying to secure a one-month medical suspension of her sentence after the suspected heart attack last month, when she was found unconscious in her cell. Her Oslo-based brother, Hamidreza Mohammadi, said the family was “shattered,” adding: “The specialists have been clear: keeping her in that prison, under that immense stress and those brutal conditions, is like a death sentence. They can’t even adjust her medication because it’s too dangerous without her full medical team present. We are not just fighting for her freedom any more; we are fighting for her heart to keep beating.” Her Paris-based daughter, Kiana Rahmani, said: “My mother’s body is simply exhausted. After more than 10 years behind bars and so many hunger strikes, her heart is struggling; she already has a stent from a previous surgery, and now she faces daily headaches, high blood pressure and constant chest pains. Even now, in Zanjan prison, as she suffers through that pain, the authorities cruelly deny her the medical care she desperately needs.” Her son, Ali, said his mother was being punished for speaking up for “those who were executed, killed, imprisoned and disappeared in Iran.”

Background: A Decade of Imprisonment

Mohammadi, now 54, has been imprisoned since December 12, 2025, when she was arrested during a visit to the eastern Iranian city of Mashhad. She had been released for health reasons in 2024 but was re-arrested in December 2025 during the memorial service of a fellow human rights activist. In February 2026, she was sentenced to more than seven years in prison, with six years for the accusation of “gathering and collusion to commit crimes.” Her family said in February that her health was worsening in prison, in part because of an alleged beating during her arrest in December, when multiple men hit and kicked her in her side, head, and neck. The Nobel committee condemned the “ongoing life-threatening mistreatment” of Mohammadi in a statement in February. The Iranian government has not commented on the alleged attack.

Wider Context: Activism and Repression

Before her re-arrest, Mohammadi had already spent more than a decade behind bars, and her total sentence amounts to 44 years over her lifetime, including 161 days in solitary confinement. She openly supported the 2022 Woman, Life, Freedom protests sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini, and has campaigned for women’s rights, the abolition of the death penalty, and improvement of prison conditions in Iran. The charges against her have included collusion against state security and propaganda against Iran’s government. The Narges Mohammadi Foundation stated: “A woman who has received 44 years of sentence in her lifetime, already spent more than 10 years of her life behind bars, 161 days in solitary confinement and faces at least 18 more years of imprisonment and 154 lashes for her peaceful activism, now needs our collective voice.”

Outlook: A Fight for Her Life

Cardiology specialists familiar with her case told the family that Mohammadi requires urgent, specialized medical care. Doctors said her complex cardiac history, including multiple previous angioplasties, means any further surgery must be carried out by her own doctors in a fully equipped hospital in Tehran, and that the facilities in Zanjan are inadequate. The lack of access to appropriate treatment is placing her life in immediate danger, the foundation said. As her family and legal team continue to press for a medical suspension of her sentence, the international community watches closely. The Nobel committee’s condemnation underscores the gravity of the situation, but no official response has come from Tehran.

The bottom line

• Narges Mohammadi’s health has deteriorated sharply, with two fainting episodes and a severe cardiac crisis, requiring hospital transfer from Zanjan prison.
• She has lost over 19 kg and suffers from uncontrolled blood pressure and chest pain; her complex cardiac history requires specialized care unavailable in prison.
• Her family and legal team have been unable to secure a medical suspension of her sentence, despite doctors warning that continued imprisonment is life-threatening.
• Mohammadi has been imprisoned for over a decade, with a total sentence of 44 years, including 161 days in solitary confinement, for peaceful activism.
• The Nobel committee has condemned her treatment as 'life-threatening mistreatment,' but the Iranian government has not commented on the alleged beating or health crisis.
• Her children and brother have publicly appealed for her release, highlighting the broader repression of political prisoners in Iran.