In an exclusive excerpt from writings smuggled out of an Iranian prison, Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi describes the “torture” of solitary confinement and the systematic denial of medical care by the prison system.
These writings, spanning the past decade, will appear in a soon-to-be-published memoir that offers a rare and alarming look at how Mohammadi—now in critical condition—has been treated. The memoir details beatings, constant interrogations, lack of medical care, and long periods in solitary confinement during her many imprisonments.
“There is no hardship worse than illness combined with imprisonment,” she wrote. “Authoritarian regimes don’t always need a hangman’s noose. Sometimes, they just wait for the human body to give out.”
‘Blindfolded, I sat down slowly. Then the interrogation began’: Iranian Nobel laureate Narges Mohammadi on the torture of solitary confinement
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After those words were written and she was arrested again, Mohammadi’s health hit another crisis point this year. Her weight dropped by more than 20 kilograms. In March, she was found unconscious in her cell after what appeared to be a heart attack. Requests from her family and doctors for proper medical treatment by her team of surgeons in Tehran were repeatedly denied. She is now being held in a small regional hospital in Zanjan, in critical condition.
Her family has said that keeping her in detention and refusing proper medical care amounts to a “slow execution.”
Mohammadi wrote about how her time in prison has severely damaged her health. She has suffered a pulmonary embolism, seizures, multiple infections, chest pain, and other life-threatening medical issues while incarcerated. She describes the agonizing wait for often inadequate medical care.
The writings were smuggled out by fellow prisoners and visitors during Mohammadi’s time in Iran’s notorious Evin, Qarchak, and Zanjan prisons—at great risk to their own safety. Over the past decade, the writings had to be rewritten several times after pages or notebooks were discovered and destroyed by prison guards.
The memoir, titled A Woman Never Stops Fighting, will be published in September. It covers Mohammadi’s early life, how her parents helped inspire her political beliefs, her path into activism, and the many years she spent in prison for public protest.
Mohammadi has been arrested 14 times for her activism in advancing women’s rights in Iran, improving prison conditions, and ending the regime’s use of the death penalty.
She has been sentenced to a total of 44 years in prison and 154 lashes across several convictions. The activist was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize while in prison in 2023, during the Women, Life, Freedom protests.
In December 2024, she was released on a temporary suspension of her sentence after a series of health problems, but was violently rearrested a year later and sentenced to several more years in prison in February of this year.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here is a list of FAQs based on the topic of a Nobel laureates secretly smuggled memoir describing beatings and neglect in Iranian prisons
BeginnerLevel Questions
1 What is this smuggled memoir everyone is talking about
Its a book written secretly in prison by a Nobel Peace Prize winner Because prison authorities wouldnt allow it the text was hidden and snuck out of Iran piece by piece to be published abroad
2 Who is the Nobel laureate mentioned
The most recent case involves Narges Mohammadi the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize winner She is an Iranian human rights activist currently imprisoned in Tehrans Evin Prison
3 What does the memoir say happens inside Iranian prisons
It describes severe beatings medical neglect solitary confinement in tiny cells denial of basic hygiene and psychological torture The author details how prisoners are denied treatment for serious illnesses like heart disease and cancer
4 Why was the memoir written in secret
Writing about prison conditions is considered a crime in Iran The author had to memorize parts and write on scraps of paper hiding them from guards to avoid harsher punishment
5 How did the memoir get out of the country
It was smuggled out by relatives or fellow activists during brief visitation periods Pages were hidden in clothing books or other personal items that were allowed to leave the prison
AdvancedLevel Questions
6 What specific beatings and neglect are described in the memoir
The memoir recounts regular disciplinary beatings for minor infractions as well as severe attacks during interrogations It also details how sick prisoners are denied hospital visits left to suffer in their cells and how guards mock their pain
7 Is this memoir legally published or is it considered a bootleg document
It is legally published by international human rights publishers However it is banned in Iran Possession of the book inside the country can lead to arrest
8 How does the Iranian government respond to these allegations
The government typically denies the claims calling them propaganda by enemies of the state
