NEW: ICE Detains Notorious Iranian Official’s Niece After Revocation Of Lawful Everlasting Residence Standing
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents arrested Hamideh Soleimani Afshar and her daughter Sarinasadat Hosseiny in Los Angeles. Soleimani is the niece of Qasem Soleimani, the former commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Quds Force who served as one of the Iranian regime’s leading figures until he was killed in a U.S. airstrike in January, 2020.
The arrests followed Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s decision to terminate their status as lawful permanent residents, also known as green card holders. Both women are now in ICE custody and pending removal from the United States, the State Department announced in a press release.
In addition, Afshar’s husband, Seyed Kalantar Motamedi, has also been barred from entering the country. The actions came after State Department identified Afshar as an outspoken supporter of the Iranian government based on press reports and her social media activity.
Records indicate that Afshar entered the United States in 2015 on a tourist visa. She was granted asylum in 2019 and received a green card in 2021. Since obtaining permanent residency, she made at least four trips back to Iran, according to a report from the New York Post.
Her daughter entered the United States in 2015 on a student visa and became a green card holder in 2023. The family resided in Los Angeles, where Afshar maintained an active social media presence on Instagram that documented aspects of her life there. That account has since been deleted.
Niece of Qasem Soleimani, former commander of the IRGC Quds Force who has now been arrested in the United States is identified as Hamideh Soleimani Afshar. Her daughter has also been arrested. Hamideh Soleimani Afshar had a luxury lifestyle in Los Angeles. She praised Khamenei… https://t.co/qWvB9914TX pic.twitter.com/dzuhn0Dbn8
— Babak Taghvaee – The Crisis Watch (@BabakTaghvaee1) April 4, 2026
According to the State Department, while living in the United States Afshar “promoted Iranian regime propaganda, celebrated attacks against American soldiers and military facilities in the Middle East, praised the new Iranian Supreme Leader, denounced America as the ‘Great Satan,’ and voiced her unflinching support for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a designated terror organization.”
The department added that she “pushed this propaganda for Iran’s terrorist regime while enjoying a lavish lifestyle in Los Angeles, as attested to by her frequent posting on her recently deleted Instagram account.”
“It is a privilege to be granted a green card to live in the United States of America. If we have reason to believe a green card holder poses a threat to the US, the green card will be revoked,” Department of Homeland Security Secretary Lauren Bis said in a statement.
“The Trump Administration will not allow our country to become a home for foreign nationals who support anti-American terrorist regimes,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced in a statement of his own. He also confirmed that he had terminated the legal status of both Afshar and her daughter, noting they were now in ICE custody pending removal.
The revocations follow similar actions taken against relatives of senior Iranian regime officials in recent months. Secretary Rubio also terminated the legal status of Fatemeh Ardeshir-Larijani, daughter of a former Iranian official, and her husband Seyed Kalantar Motamedi.
Both individuals are no longer in the United States and are barred from future entry. The State Department has described these measures as part of an effort to prevent the United States from serving as a residence for individuals who support designated terrorist organizations or regimes opposed to U.S. interests.
Afshar’s immigration timeline shows she transitioned from temporary visas to asylum and then permanent residency over several years under different administrations. Her daughter followed a parallel student-to-permanent-resident path.
No additional details on their specific employment, education, or community involvement in the United States have been released beyond the social media activity cited by officials and the general description of their lifestyle in Los Angeles.
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