Two family members of the late Iranian General Qassem Soleimani have been arrested in the US after their residency permits were revoked due to their support for the Iranian regime and anti-American sentiments.
Key Points
- Two relatives of Qassem Soleimani were arrested in the US after their residency permits were revoked.
- The US State Department confirmed the arrests following the termination of their green card status.
- Senator Marco Rubio stated that one of the arrested individuals supported the Iranian regime and celebrated attacks on Americans.
- The arrested individuals are now in ICE custody and face deportation from the United States.
- The US has also barred the husband of one of the arrested individuals from entering the country.
Two family members of slain Iranian general Qassem Soleimani, who was killed in a United States strike in January 2020, have been arrested in the US after their residency permits were rescinded, the State Department said.
"Last night, the niece and grand niece of deceased Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps Major General Qassem Soleimani were arrested by federal agents following Secretary of State Marco Rubio's termination of their lawful permanent resident status," a department statement said.
Rubio too announced the action on X, stating that both of them had been living in the United States on green cards until recently.
"Until recently, Hamideh Soleimani Afshar and her daughter were green card holders living lavishly in the United States. Afshar is the niece of the late Iranian Major General Qasem Soleimani. She is also an outspoken supporter of the Iranian regime who celebrated attacks on Americans and referred to our country as the 'Great Satan'," he said.
"This week, I terminated both Afshar and her daughter's legal status, and they are now in ICE custody, pending removal from the United States. The Trump Administration will not allow our country to become a home for foreign nationals who support anti-American terrorist regimes," he wrote.
The State Department said in a statement that Afshar's husband has also been barred from entering the United States.
Earlier, Rubio also revoked the legal status of Fatemeh Ardeshir-Larijani, the daughter of the former Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran, Ali Larijani, and her husband, Seyed Kalantar Motamedi.
Ali Larijani was killed in Israeli strikes in the ongoing war.
Who Was Qasem Soleimani?
Soleimani, who led the IRGC's foreign operations arm, was killed in a US drone strike while he was in the Iraqi capital Baghdad in January 2020.
He was widely popular inside Iran and regarded as a dangerous adversary by the United States and its allies.
Soleimani was considered one of the most powerful military figures in the region.
