Federal agents with Immigration and Customs Enforcement took Hamideh Soleimani Afshar and her daughter into custody last night after Secretary of State Marco Rubio ended their green card status.
The two women, niece and grandniece of the late Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps commander Qasem Soleimani, had lived in the United States as lawful permanent residents until Rubio’s decision.
On Saturday, April 4, the Secretary of State reported that Soleimani Afshar had openly backed Iran’s government on social media.
She reportedly shared content praising the regime’s Supreme Leader, defended the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a group the U.S. lists as a terrorist organization, and marked attacks on American troops and bases in the Middle East.
Posts from her now-deleted Instagram account showed her cheering Iran’s positions while she enjoyed life in Los Angeles, including luxury settings and private updates that drew attention from critics.
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Her husband also faces a ban on entering the country. The moves fit a wider push by the Trump administration to block supporters of Iran’s leadership from staying in America.
Rubio acted earlier this month in another high-profile case, stripping legal status from Fatemeh Ardeshir-Larijani, the daughter of Ali Larijani, a former top Iranian security official, and her husband, Seyed Kalantar Motamedi.
Both left the United States and cannot return. Ardeshir-Larijani had worked as an oncologist at Emory University in Georgia before the change.
Lawmakers there had pressed for her removal from the hospital and state medical licensing board over family connections to officials who called for violence against Americans.
The State Department thanked Homeland Security and ICE for their quick work on the arrests and removals.
Officials described the actions as part of a firm policy: the U.S. will not shelter people who back a regime labeled a state sponsor of terrorism.
U.S. eliminates Qasem Soleimani.
Qasem Soleimani led the Quds Force, the IRGC unit handling overseas operations. He directed support for militant groups across the region until a U.S. drone strike killed him in Iraq in January 2020.
Iran hailed him as a hero, while the United States held him responsible for attacks that killed hundreds of American service members and allies.
Soleimani Afshar’s activity came to light through public posts and reporting on her accounts. She had shown strong opposition to the United States, calling it the “Great Satan” in line with long-standing Iranian rhetoric.
At the same time, she celebrated the rise of Mojtaba Khamenei as the new Supreme Leader and stood behind the IRGC despite its designation.
The Trump team has, in recent days, been targeting family members of key regime figures, trying to cut off any financial or propaganda benefits they might gain from living inside the United States.
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Green card holders enjoy most of the rights of citizens, short of voting, including work and travel freedoms, but the government can revoke that status for national security reasons.
Iran’s government has not yet issued an official reaction to the arrests. Inside the country, state media frequently portrays such U.S. moves as bullying, while reform-minded Iranians sometimes quietly welcome pressure on regime elites.
Rubio to take more actions.
The cases of Soleimani Afshar and Ardeshir-Larijani give a clear picture of how family connections to Iran’s power structure reach into American cities and institutions.
The administration plans to keep reviewing similar files, with Rubio’s office suggesting additional names in the coming weeks, focusing on individuals who combined U.S. residency with open defense of Tehran.
Meanwhile, Hamideh Soleimani Afshar and her daughter will remain in federal custody pending removal proceedings.
As it stands, their path back to any legal U.S. presence appears closed. The same holds for the Larijani family members who have already passed away.
