The human rights news agency "Hrana" reported that Iranian prisoner and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi began a hunger strike on Monday in protest against what she termed the prison administration's failure to provide medical care. "Hrana" noted that authorities had not allowed the 51-year-old woman to go to the hospital for treatment of heart and lung ailments last week because she refused to wear a mandatory headscarf during the visit. The news agency did not disclose its sources. It continued: "Mohammadi began her hunger strike in protest against the authorities' failure to meet her demands, which included transferring her to a specialized hospital. This deprivation continues at the order of the prison authorities."
For its part, the Nobel Committee expressed concern regarding Mohammadi's health, stating that requiring female prisoners in Iran to wear a hijab to enter the hospital is "inhumane" and "morally unacceptable."
**13 Arrests**
Mohammadi has been arrested more than a dozen times throughout her life, and this is her third time in Iran's Evin prison since 2012. She is serving multiple sentences totaling nearly 12 years in prison on charges including spreading propaganda against the Islamic Republic. The campaign "Freedom for Narges Mohammadi" posted on X, "We are concerned about the physical and health condition of Narges Mohammadi."
The women’s rights advocate won the award on October 6, in a strong challenge to Tehran's religious leaders, who accused the Nobel Committee of interfering in human rights issues and politicizing them.
