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Finally, Iran releases Nobel Laureate Narges Mohammadi on medical grounds
Iran has released Nobel Peace laureate Narges Mohammadi, jailed since November 2021, for three weeks on medical grounds.
Mohammadi’s lawyer posted on social media.
Over the past quarter century, Mohammadi, 52, has been repeatedly tried and jailed for her vocal campaigning against Iran’s widespread use of capital punishment and its mandatory dress code for women.
“Based on the advice of the examining doctor, the public prosecutor suspended the jail sentence against Narges Mohammadi for three weeks and she was released from prison,” Mostafa Nili said on X.
“The grounds for her release are her physical condition after the removal of a tumour and a bone graft three weeks ago.
“The tumour was benign but she needs check-ups every three months.”
Mohammadi’s family and supporters swiftly put out a statement protesting that the three weeks’ medical leave was not enough.
“A 21-day suspension of Narges Mohammadi’s sentence is inadequate. We demand Narges Mohammadi’s immediate and unconditional release or at least an extension of her leave to three months.
“The denial of proper medical care and sufficient recovery time post-surgery has led to the rapid development of bedsores and intensified pain in her back and legs,” they said in a statement.
Mohammadi has spent much of the past decade behind bars and has not seen her twin children, who live in Paris, since 2015.
She is serving her sentence in the women’s section of the capital’s notorious Evin prison with around 50 other inmates, according to her husband Taghi Rahmani.
In June, she was sentenced to an additional year behind bars for “propaganda against the state”.
She refused to appear in court for the trial after her request for it to be held in public was rejected.
Even behind bars, the Nobel laureate has not given up campaigning, staging protests in the prison yard and going on hunger strikes.
In a letter from prison in September, she condemned the “devastating oppression” of women in Iran.
The letter was published by her foundation to mark the second anniversary of the nationwide protests that followed the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, an Iranian Kurdish woman detained for an alleged breach of the dress code.
Mohammadi won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2023, primarily for her campaigning against the death penalty in Iran. Her children collected the award on her behalf as she was in prison at the time.
Human rights groups, including Amnesty International, say Iran carries out more executions each year than any other country apart from China, for which no reliable figures are available.
Born in the northwestern city of Zanjan in 1972, Mohammadi studied physics and pursued a career in engineering alongside work as a journalist for several reformist media outlets.
In the 2000s, she joined the Defenders of Human Rights Center set up by 2003 Nobel Peace Prize winner Shirin Ebadi, an organisation of which Mohammadi remains vice president.
She was jailed from May 2015 to October 2020 for “forming and leading an illegal group”, campaigning for the abolition of the death penalty in Iran.
AFP
The chairman of Agatu Local Government Area in Benue State, James Melvin Ejeh, has given Fulani herdsmen a 48-hour notice to leave all agricultural lands.
This announcement was made during a stakeholders’ meeting on Saturday, April 26, 2025, at the council secretariat in Obagaji.
The meeting included traditional leaders, representatives from the Fulani community, youth leaders, and security personnel to discuss the increasing concerns regarding herders’ activities on farmland as the planting season nears.
The Chief Press Secretary to the Agatu LGA Chairman, Obochi Solomon, reported that Ejeh highlighted the importance of safeguarding agricultural activities in Agatu in light of the upcoming planting season.
He remarked that agriculture is essential to the local economy and that farmers should have unhindered access to their lands.
Ejeh also acknowledged the current peace in the region but reiterated that maintaining uninterrupted farming activities is of utmost importance.
“Our farmers must cultivate without disruption. We will do everything necessary to create a safe environment for them,” he said.
The statement further disclosed that during the meeting, the Ado of the Fulani requested a one-week extension to allow the herders to prepare for their relocation, a request that the council approved.
The CPS noted that the General Youth Chairman of Agatu LGA, Oloche Silas, committed on behalf of the Agatu youth to support the peaceful evacuation process and to avoid any acts of violence.
Security personnel, including members of the Nigeria Police Force and the Department of State Services (DSS), were reported to have praised the peaceful resolution of the issue and promised to offer necessary assistance during the relocation.
Additionally, representing the Och’Agatu, Chief John Agidani, spoke at the meeting, commending the leadership of the Council Chairman and urging all parties to adhere to the agreement.
Five alleged kidnappers have reportedly died after a fierce gun battle with operatives of the CP-Special Assignment Team.
The suspects were confirmed dead in a hospital they were rushed to for medical attention.
Delta State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Bright Edafe who confirmed the development in a statement, stated that the incident occurred on 21st April 2025.
The police image maker disclosed that operatives of the CP-Special Assignment team, acting on intelligence relating to kidnapping in Ubuluku, Isseluku, Issele-Asagba, and environs by one Bello Abubakar and his gang members, stormed one of their hideouts in Agu-Amawbia forest, Anambra State.
SP Edafe pointed out that during the raid of the suspects hideout in the forest, the operatives recovered one AK-47 rifle and one hundred and thirty-two rounds of live ammunition.
He further said the investigation was extended to another of their hideouts in a forest between Issele-Asagba and Utulu, where the said Bello Abubakar and his gang members were waiting in ambush.
According to the police image maker, the suspected kidnappers attacked the policemen in a fierce gun battle, but the team, who were aware of the battle ahead, reciprocated in like manner.
SP Edafe added that the manhunt for other injured fleeing suspects is ongoing.
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