The European Union on Tuesday called on Iran to release "human rights defenders" including Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi.
The EU in a statement expressed "serious concern over the widespread use of arbitrary detention by Iranian authorities to suppress critical voices within the country."
"We call on the Iranian authorities to release all individuals unjustly detained for exercising their fundamental rights, including freedom of expression and assembly," the statement continued.
"This includes Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi, whose health remains fragile, as well as other human rights defenders who were arrested on 12 December in Mashhad.
"Human rights defenders must be able to make their voices heard and to carry out their legitimate work without risking their freedom, in Iran as everywhere else."
Mohammadi, along with reportedly 40 other activists, was arrested on December 12 during a memorial service for a human rights lawyer in Mashhad in north-eastern Iran. They had reportedly shouted harsh slogans against the country's Islamic leadership.
Mohammadi was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2023 for her fight against the oppression of women in Iran.
