Nobel laureate Narges Mohammadi tells AP Iranians are paying the price for war

Mohammadi said Iranians are grappling with multiple crises arising from the war.

Iranians are suffering as economic misery and internal repression leave “no room for people to breathe” after 1 1/2 years of wars and ongoing U.S. sanctions, the country’s most prominent human rights activist has told The Associated Press.

Narges Mohammadi , 54, who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2023 , was temporarily released from prison for medical reasons earlier this year after falling unconscious and being transferred to a hospital.

Her memoir — titled “A Woman Never Stops Fighting" — was written behind bars, with parts of it smuggled out by fellow inmates. Editions in French, German and nine other languages are being released this month. The English and Farsi editions are to be released next year.

In an interview conducted Friday by The Associated Press from outside Iran, Mohammadi said Iranians are grappling with multiple crises stemming from the ongoing war and deepening economic pressure.

But she said many Iranians continue to quietly defy their leaders, a change she traces back to the 2022 protests over the death of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who died in a hospital after being detained for violating authorities' strict Islamic dress code.

The release of Mohammadi's book this month coincides with Amini's death to honor her memory, her representatives said. The English and Farsi editions are to be released in September 2027 for the same reason.

“If you go out into the streets, you see a wave of resistance among the people, a wave of awareness, and their determination to stand up for their rights,” Mohammadi said. She said that government repression has intensified, but that many in a new younger generation “know their rights” and were standing firm. “And that gives us reason for hope,” she said.

AP agreed not to ask Mohammadi specific questions about the political situation and leadership in Iran, due to concerns for her safety, though she commented generally about the cost of war.

In her interview with AP, Mohammadi — who has been jailed repeatedly over decades of advocating for human rights and was behind bars when she was awarded the Nobel Prize — described her most recent arrest, detention and health.

She said she was severely beaten by security forces when detained in December, in the northeastern city of Mashhad. She and a group of activists were attending a memorial ceremony for human rights lawyer Khosrow Alikordi, who was found dead in his office. She was arrested while giving a public speech. She was sentenced to 16 years and more than a 100 lashes for attending that rally. She has not been flogged but spent long periods in solitary confinement.

“My detention was really life-threatening," she said. "My head was severely hurt because most of the hits were to my head, and despite being in that condition, they kept me for two months in solitary confinement during which my condition was really concerning.”

She lost consciousness May 1 and was transferred to a hospital.