Jailed Iranian activist wins Nobel Prize

Imprisoned Iranian human rights activist Narges Mohammadi has won the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize.

Announcing the decision, the Norwegian Nobel Committee said Ms Mohammadi, 51, was honored for her fight against the oppression of women in Iran. Her struggle has come at a "tremendous personal cost", committee chairwoman Berit Reiss-Andersen said.

Ms Mohammadi is currently serving a 10-year jail term in Iran's notorious Evin prison in the capital, Tehran.

As well as her current jail term, Ms Mohammadi has been arrested 13 times, convicted five times and sentenced to a total of 31 years in prison. She has also been sentenced to 154 lashes - it is unclear whether that punishment has been carried out.

She said such assaults had become more common during the protests, triggered by the death in police custody of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in September 2022.

Images of Iranian women defiantly setting their headscarves on fire captivated the world. However the Iranian authorities have brutally cracked down on the protests and they have largely subsided.

Iran's foreign ministry said the award was "biased" and in line with "the interventionist and anti-Iran policies of some European countries".

Millions of Iranians will be cheering this award along with human rights activists around the world. The Nobel committee decision also sends a very strong signal of disapproval to the Iranian authorities.