Iran Slaps 7 More Years in Prison for Nobel Laureate Narges Mohammadi

Iran has sentenced Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi to more than seven additional years in prison after she began a hunger strike, her supporters said, as Tehran cracks down on all dissent following nationwide protests and the deaths of thousands at the hands of security forces, The Guardian reported.

Supporters say Mohammadi has been on a hunger strike since Feb. 2. (Photo: Voice of America) 

The new convictions against Mohammadi come as Iran tries to negotiate with the US over its nuclear program to avert a military strike threatened by Donald Trump.

Iran’s top diplomat said on Sunday that Tehran’s strength came from its ability to “say no to the great powers,” striking a maximalist position just after negotiations in Oman with the US. Mohammadi’s supporters cited her lawyer, Mostafa Nili, who had spoken to her.

Nili confirmed the sentence on X, saying it had been handed down on Saturday by a court in the city of Mashhad.

“She has been sentenced to six years in prison for ‘gathering and collusion,’ and one and a half years for propaganda, and a two-year travel ban,” he wrote.

Mohammadi had received another two years of internal exile to the city of Khosf, about 740 km (460 miles) southeast of the capital, Tehran, the lawyer added.

Supporters say Mohammadi has been on a hunger strike since Feb. 2.

She had been arrested in December at a memorial ceremony honoring Khosrow Alikordi, a 46-year-old Iranian lawyer and human rights advocate who had been based in Mashhad. Footage from the demonstration showed her shouting and demanding justice for Alikordi and others