Shirin Ebadi, the first Muslim woman and Iranian to win the Nobel Peace Prize, is suing the US government for blocking publication of her memoirs.

American companies are banned from publishing books by authors in countries subject to US sanctions - Iran, Cuba, and Sudan - unless the works have already been completed without any US involvement, the BBC reported on Tuesday.

Ebadi and her would-be literary agent, the Strothman Agency, filed suit in New York last week and a federal judge on Monday agreed to add it to comparable suits brought by other publishers and authors.

Ebadi said blocking the publication of her memoirs in the United States would be a "critical missed opportunity both for Americans to learn more about my country and its people from a variety of Iranian voices and for a better understanding to be achieved between our two countries."

Federal regulations also forbid publishers from promoting or marketing works from Iran, Cuba, and Sudan unless they obtain a license from the treasury department.