Human rights activist Narges Mohammadi has been threatened with “physical elimination” by Iran, according to a statement from the Norwegian Nobel Committee. Ms. Mohammadi, an Iranian, was awarded the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize for her work tackling the oppression of women in the Middle Eastern country. She told the committee that she had received warnings from “agents of the regime” through indirect channels and her lawyers.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee is alarmed by the threats made against Ms. Mohammadi and is concerned about the safety of all Iranian citizens with a critical voice. “The threats conveyed to Ms. Mohammadi make it clear that her security is at stake, unless she commits to end all public engagement within Iran, as well as any international advocacy or media appearances in support of democracy, human rights, and freedom of expression,” the committee’s statement added.
Ms. Mohammadi became a Nobel laureate while serving a 10-year jail sentence in Iran’s Evin prison, where she had been held since 2021. Her children accepted the award on her behalf. The committee deemed her fight against the oppression of women in Iran had come at a “tremendous personal cost.” In total, she has been arrested by the Iranian regime 13 times, convicted five times, and sentenced to more than 30 years in prison.
In December 2024, Ms. Mohammadi was given a temporary release on medical grounds. The threats against her are part of a larger pattern of intimidation and violence used by the Iranian regime against dissidents and critics. Reports by Western intelligence agencies have found evidence of a dramatic escalation in plots by the Iranian regime to kidnap or assassinate dissidents, journalists, and political foes abroad.
The UK government has also warned of a “rising” and unpredictable threat from Iran. The government’s intelligence and security committee published details of an inquiry into Iranian state assassinations and kidnap, espionage, cyberattacks, and its nuclear program based on evidence up to August 2023. The committee outlined a “sharp increase” in physical threats against opponents of Iran’s regime in the UK. The Iranian embassy in London rejected the report’s findings.