*Fresh US Attacks Will Trigger Iran To Enrich Uranium To Nuclear Bomb Grade -Senior Lawmaker Warns
More than 110 Nobel laureates have called for the immediate and unconditional release of Narges Mohammadi, the imprisoned Iranian human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, after she was transferred to hospital amid concerns over her rapidly deteriorating health.
In a statement released today, the Nobel laureates urged the Iranian authorities and the international community to act “without delay” to secure Mohammadi’s release and ensure her continued access to medical treatment.
Nigeria’s activist first ever Nobel laureate in Literature, Wole Soyinka (he won the award in 1986), was not listed among those who made the demand, though a source claimed he was not obligated to.
When People&Politics searched the site nobelwomen’sinitiative.org, the paper found the full list containing the names of all the laureates who urged Mohammadi’s release.
The paper found out that, of the over 112, four were laureates in Literature.
They are listed as J. M. Coetzee (2003); Elfriede Jelinek (2004); Herta Muller (2009); and Orhan Pamuk (2006).
The signatories to the statement included 26 Nobel laureates in Chemistry, 12 in Economics, the four in Literature, 29 in Medicine, 11 Peace laureates and 29 in Physics, and include the authors Annie Ernaux and JM Coetzee.
Mohammadi, who was awarded the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize for decades of campaigning for women’s rights in Iran, was transferred by ambulance in a critical medical condition to Tehran’s Pars hospital on 10 May for specialised treatment.
The human rights activist has experienced severe weight loss, unstable blood pressure and serious cardiac symptoms while in detention, and was found unconscious in her cell after a possible heart attack.
Mohammadi’s transfer to hospital is only a temporary respite and her representatives fear she will be returned to prison if her condition improves.
The Nobel laureates called for her immediate release and for all charges against her to be dropped.
“Medical experts warn that her life may be at imminent risk,” they said in a joint statement, adding that she had been denied specialised medical care for months while imprisoned.
Outraged Reactions
The US anti-landmine activist who was awarded the Peace Prize in 1997, Jody Williams, said Mohammadi “should never have been brought to the brink of death.”
“No one, anywhere, should be imprisoned for peaceful protest or for defending human rights,” Williams said.
The Yemeni journalist and 2011 Nobel laureate Tawakkol Karman described Mohammadi as “the fearless voice of women resisting oppression and demanding freedom.”
“No prison can silence the struggle for dignity and justice. Narges must be released, and the world must continue to stand with the women of Iran,” Karman said.
Mohammadi’s Paris-based son, Ali Rahmani, said: “The temporary suspension of my mother’s sentence is simply not enough. After years of imprisonment, solitary confinement and systematic medical neglect, her life still hangs by a thread.
“We do not just want her out of a cell for a few days; we demand a permanent end to this judicial persecution. My mom requires unconditional freedom and long-term, specialised care without the shadow of a return to the environment that nearly killed her.”
Mohammadi has been repeatedly detained by Iranian authorities for her activism since first being arrested in 1998, including her campaigns against the death penalty and Iran’s mandatory hijab laws.
She has been sentenced to more than 44 years in prison and 154 lashes over multiple sentences.
Iran Could Enrich Uranium To Nuclear Weapon Grade If Attacked –Senior Lawmaker Warns
US President Donald Trump had insisted that one of his central objectives in launching a war against Iran was to ensure Tehran does not develop a nuclear weapon.
Iran – which insists its nuclear programme is peaceful – is reportedly yet to hand over more than 400 kg of uranium enriched up to 60%, a short, technical step from weapons-grade levels of 90%.
Now that it looks as if the US could restart its war, Iran’s Parliamentary National Security and Foreign Policy Commission spokesperson, Ebrahim Rezaei, warned that Iran could enrich uranium up to 90% purity if attacked again.
“One of Iran’s options in the event of another attack could be 90 percent enrichment. We will review it in the Parliament,” Rezaei posted on X.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said the war with Iran will continue as long as the country has a stockpile of highly enriched uranium.
“It’s not over, because there’s still nuclear material – enriched uranium – that has to be taken out of Iran. There are still enrichment sites that have to be dismantled,” he told the CBS programme 60 Minutes.
Asked how it should be removed, Netanyahu said: “You go in and you take it out.”
*PHOTO CAPTION: Narges Mohammadi. File photo.
