Nobel Committee Condemns Jail Term for Iranian Laureate Mohammadi

An undated photo of Narges Mohammadi provided by the foundation that bears her name © - / NARGES MOHAMMADI FOUNDATION/AFP
An undated photo of Narges Mohammadi provided by the foundation that bears her name © - / NARGES MOHAMMADI FOUNDATION/AFP
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Nobel Committee Condemns Jail Term for Iranian Laureate Mohammadi

An undated photo of Narges Mohammadi provided by the foundation that bears her name © - / NARGES MOHAMMADI FOUNDATION/AFP
An undated photo of Narges Mohammadi provided by the foundation that bears her name © - / NARGES MOHAMMADI FOUNDATION/AFP

The Norwegian Nobel Committee on Thursday criticized an Iranian court's decision to slap an additional one-year jail term on imprisoned 2023 Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi.

Jorgen Watne Frydnes, chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, called it "a flagrant violation of human rights and a travesty of justice".

Mohammadi, 52, has been jailed since November 2021 over several past convictions relating to her campaigns against the obligatory hijab for women and capital punishment in Iran.

Her lawyer, Mostafa Nili, said on X on Tuesday: "Mohammadi was sentenced to one year in prison for propaganda against the system."

The Nobel Committee said it "strongly condemns the harsh and unjust sentencing".

Nili said the sentence was in response to calls to boycott parliamentary elections, letters to Swedish and Norwegian lawmakers, and comments made about journalist and student Dina Ghalibaf, AFP reported.

Rights groups said Ghalibaf was taken into custody after accusing security forces on social media of putting her in handcuffs and sexually assaulting her during a previous arrest at a metro station.

Ghalibaf has since been released.

The Iranian judiciary's Mizan Online website said on April 22 that Ghalibaf "had not been raped" and that she was being prosecuted for making a "false statement".

Mohammadi refused to attend a trial hearing in Tehran earlier this month, and in March shared an audio message from prison in which she decried a "full-scale war against women" in the Islamic republic.

She was honoured with the Nobel Peace Prize in October "for her fight against the oppression of women in Iran and her fight to promote human rights and freedom for all".



South Korea, China Evacuate Citizens from Lebanon as Tensions Rise

 South Korean nationals and their family members arrive after being evacuated from Lebanon with a South Korea's military aircraft at the Seoul airport in Seongnam, South Korea, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024. (Yonhap via AP)
South Korean nationals and their family members arrive after being evacuated from Lebanon with a South Korea's military aircraft at the Seoul airport in Seongnam, South Korea, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024. (Yonhap via AP)
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South Korea, China Evacuate Citizens from Lebanon as Tensions Rise

 South Korean nationals and their family members arrive after being evacuated from Lebanon with a South Korea's military aircraft at the Seoul airport in Seongnam, South Korea, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024. (Yonhap via AP)
South Korean nationals and their family members arrive after being evacuated from Lebanon with a South Korea's military aircraft at the Seoul airport in Seongnam, South Korea, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024. (Yonhap via AP)

A South Korean military transport aircraft returned 97 citizens and family members from Lebanon on Saturday as Middle East tensions rise, the foreign ministry said.

A KC-330 aircraft left Beirut on Friday afternoon with the evacuees, who include Lebanese family members, and arrived at a military airfield on the south of Seoul, the ministry said.

President Yoon Suk Yeol on Wednesday ordered military aircraft to be deployed to evacuate South Korean citizens from parts of the Middle East as conflict escalates between Israel and Hezbollah, as well as the armed group's backer, Iran.

South Korea's defense ministry said it flew a C130J transport plane as backup, which is capable of operating on shorter runways and under fire, as a precaution, and sent 39 military personnel, including mechanics and diplomats.

The government will take further actions to ensure the safety of its citizens, the foreign ministry said without elaborating.

South Korean diplomats stationed in Lebanon remained in the country, Yonhap news agency reported.

More than 200 Chinese citizens have been safely evacuated from Lebanon, China's foreign ministry said on Saturday.

"These people, who have been evacuated in two batches, include three Hong Kong residents and one Taiwan compatriot," the ministry said in a statement in response to a Reuters query on the situation.

"The Chinese Embassy in Lebanon remains firm in Lebanon and continues to assist Chinese citizens remaining there in taking security measures," it added.

On Wednesday, China's official Xinhua news agency said more than 200 Chinese citizens had been safely evacuated from Lebanon by the government.

Taiwan's foreign ministry said three Taiwanese in Lebanon were expected to return to the island this month and that two others had opted to stay for family reasons.

The ministry added that another Taiwanese decided late last month to take a boat out of the country arranged by China, and that the de facto Taiwan embassy in Jordan was aware of that process. It did not elaborate.