U.S. calls on Iran to immediately release Nobel laureate Narges Mohammadi

The U.S. State Department on Thursday called on Iran to immediately release Iranian human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi following a new prison sentence.

In a statement, the department said Mohammadi had been held for nearly two months without access to a lawyer and was tried in proceedings that failed to meet minimum standards of due process.

Iran’s Revolutionary Court in Mashhad sentenced Mohammadi to an additional seven years in prison after she launched a hunger strike, her lawyer Mostafa Nili said. The ruling includes six years for “collusion and gathering information”, 18 months for propaganda, a two-year travel ban and two years of internal exile to the city of Khosf.

Mohammadi has received multiple prison sentences totalling 36 years. Her supporters say she is a political prisoner targeted for her advocacy for women’s rights and democracy in Iran.