It's a victory for her struggle, but the legal system in Iran is a seesaw. She has been released earlier and been imprisoned again, says Hammargren, Middle East analyst affiliated with the Foreign Policy Institute.
Narges Mohammadi has been imprisoned since the autumn of 2021 and has had her sentence extended several times after new verdicts. She was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2023 for her over 20-year-long work for women's rights in Iran.
She is an unwavering champion for human rights and women's rights in Iran. One should know that she has her children and her husband abroad, she has not seen them for many years, but she does not bend.
More difficult after the Nobel Prize
Fataneh Farahani, professor of ethnology at Stockholm University, says that Mohammadi has long been regarded as one of the strongest symbols of resistance, and thereby a threat, to the regime.
Paradoxically, it became more difficult for the regime to release her after the Nobel Prize, since they did not want to give the impression of yielding to international pressure.
The 52-year-old Mohammadi suffers from a heart disease, and according to her legal counsel, she is to be released from the notorious Evin prison for three weeks due to health reasons.
I feel cautious optimism. One becomes happy that she, after all the pressure, gets to come out, but she is seriously ill. I really hope she gets the care she needs, says Farahani.
Domestic political motive?
Health reasons, yes, but the question is how to read this domestically in Iran, says Bitte Hammargren.
Does Iran care about international opinion?
Some within the regime care about some of the international opinion. Iran is currently in a weakened position.
She adds:
It looks like a thought that the temporary release coincides with Nobel Day (December 10). Iran does not want bad publicity in connection with this.
