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Iranian Nobel Laureate Faces New Trial, Says Family

Narges Mohammadi, pictured here in April 2021, won the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize for advocating for women's rights in Iran. (AFP)
Narges Mohammadi, pictured here in April 2021, won the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize for advocating for women's rights in Iran. (AFP)
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Iranian Nobel Laureate Faces New Trial, Says Family

Narges Mohammadi, pictured here in April 2021, won the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize for advocating for women's rights in Iran. (AFP)
Narges Mohammadi, pictured here in April 2021, won the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize for advocating for women's rights in Iran. (AFP)

Jailed Iranian Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi faces a new trial over accusations she made against the security forces of sexually assaulting female prisoners, her family said on Saturday.

The trial, due to begin on Sunday, relates to an audio message she shared from prison in April shared by supporters and in which she decried a "full-scale war against women" in the country.

She is charged in this latest case with making "propaganda against the regime", it said.

There has been no comment on the case by the Iranian judicial authorities.

Her family quoted Mohammadi as saying that the trial should be held in public so "witnesses and survivors can testify to the sexual assaults perpetrated by" the Iranian regime against women.

Mohammadi, who is held in Tehran's Evin prison, urged Iranian women in her April message via her Instagram page to share their stories of arrest and sexual assault at the hands of the authorities.

She pointed to the case of journalist and student Dina Ghalibaf who, according to rights groups, was arrested after accusing security forces on social media of handcuffing and sexually assaulting her during a previous arrest at a metro station. Ghalibaf was later released.

The authorities in Iran have in recent weeks intensified a crackdown obliging women to obey the country's religious dress code, notably making use of video surveillance.

Mohammadi has been incarcerated since November 2021 and has not seen her Paris-based husband and twin children for several years.

She said the trial that opens on Sunday will be the fourth such case against her.

Mohammadi is already serving sentences based on several convictions issued in recent years, which her family says punish her rights campaigning.

According to her family, her sentences now amount to 12 years and three months of imprisonment, 154 lashes, two years of exile and various social and political restrictions.

Mohammadi has long been a staunch opponent of the obligation for women in Iran to wear the headscarf and has continued her campaign even in prison, refusing to wear the hijab in front of male officials.

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Prayers and Tears Mark 20 Years Since the Indian Ocean Tsunami That Killed Some 230,000 People

Acehnese people attend a ceremony commemorating the 20th anniversary of the Indian Ocean Tsunami at the Baiturrahman Mosque, an Aceh landmark that survived from the tsunami, in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, 26 December 2024.
Acehnese people attend a ceremony commemorating the 20th anniversary of the Indian Ocean Tsunami at the Baiturrahman Mosque, an Aceh landmark that survived from the tsunami, in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, 26 December 2024.
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Prayers and Tears Mark 20 Years Since the Indian Ocean Tsunami That Killed Some 230,000 People

Acehnese people attend a ceremony commemorating the 20th anniversary of the Indian Ocean Tsunami at the Baiturrahman Mosque, an Aceh landmark that survived from the tsunami, in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, 26 December 2024.
Acehnese people attend a ceremony commemorating the 20th anniversary of the Indian Ocean Tsunami at the Baiturrahman Mosque, an Aceh landmark that survived from the tsunami, in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, 26 December 2024.

People started gathering in prayer on Thursday and visiting the mass graves in Indonesia’s Aceh province to mark 20 years since the massive Indian Ocean tsunami, one of modern history’s worst natural disasters.

Many openly wept as they placed flowers at a mass grave in Ulee Lheue village where more than 14,000 unidentified and unclaimed tsunami victims are buried. It is one of several mass graves in Banda Aceh, the capital of Indonesia’s northernmost province. It was one of the areas worst-hit by the earthquake and tsunami, along with the district of Aceh Besar.

"We miss them and we still don’t know where they are. All we know is that every year we visit the mass grave in Ulee Lhue and Siron," said Muhamad Amirudin, 54, who lost two of his children 20 years ago and has never found their bodies.

"This life is only temporary, so we do our best to be useful to others," Amirudin, visiting the grave with his wife, said.

A powerful 9.1-magnitude earthquake off the coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra on Dec. 26, 2004, triggered a tsunami that killed around 230,000 people across a dozen countries, reaching as far as East Africa. Some 1.7 million people were displaced, mostly in the four worst-affected countries: Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India and Thailand.

More than 170,000 people died in Indonesia alone.

A relative of a victim of a 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami offers flowers during its 20th anniversary at Tsunami Memorial Park at Ban Nam Khem, Takuapa district of Phang Nga province, southern Thailand, Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024. (AP)

Even though 20 years have passed, survivors are still grieving the loved ones they lost to the giant wave that flattened buildings all the way to the provincial capital of Banda Aceh.

Thousands of people gathered to pray at the Baiturrahman Mosque in downtown Banda Aceh. Sirens sounded across the city for three minutes to mark the time of the earthquake that triggered the tsunami.

The infrastructure in Aceh has been rebuilt and is now more resilient than it was before the tsunami struck. Early warning systems have been installed in coastal areas to alert residents of potential tsunamis, providing crucial time to seek safety.

The rebuilding efforts were made possible by the support of international donors and organizations, who contributed significant funds to help the region recover. Schools, hospitals, and essential infrastructure that were destroyed by the disaster have been reconstructed with enhanced strength and durability, ensuring better preparedness for future challenges.

A relative of victim of a 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami stands at Ban Nam Khem beach, Takuapa district of Phang Nga province, southern Thailand, Thursday, Dec. 26, 2024. (AP)

In Thailand, people gathered at a memorial ceremony in Ban Nam Khem, a small fishing village in Phang Nga province that bore the brunt of the devastating waves.

The tsunami also claimed the lives of over 8,000 people in Thailand, including many who remain missing, leaving a deep scar on the nation’s history. Nearly 400 bodies remain unclaimed.

Mourners shed tears and comforted each other as they laid flowers at the village’s tsunami memorial. Around 300 people joined a modest ceremony with Muslim, Christian and Buddhist and prayers.

Urai Sirisuk said she avoids the seaside memorial park the rest of the year, because the loss of her 4-year-old daughter still cuts deep every time she's reminded of it.

"I have this feeling that the sea has taken my child. I’m very angry with it. I can’t even put my foot in the water," she said.

But, she said, "I still hear her voice in my ears, that she’s calling for me. I can’t abandon her. So I have to be here, for my child."