The Department of Homeland Security announced this past weekend that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) apprehended two individuals related to an Iranian terrorist who had attempted an attack on former President Donald Trump during his final term.
In January 2020, Trump authorized the assassination of Qasem Soleimani, an Iranian Major General and commander of the Quds Force within the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Trump, following the drone strike that killed Soleimani near Baghdad International Airport, remarked on Soleimani’s violent tendencies and his involvement in terror activities that reached places like New Delhi and London. He expressed a sense of closure, stating, “Today, we remember the victims of Soleimani’s many atrocities, and we take comfort in knowing that his reign of terror is over.”
Despite her uncle’s notorious background, Hamide Soleimani Afshar, entered the U.S. on a tourist visa in June 2015 to assist in the Iraqi insurgency against American forces. Meanwhile, her daughter, Salinasadat Hosseini, arrived in the country on a student visa just a month later.
Both women received asylum in 2019, with Soleimani’s niece obtaining a green card in 2021, followed by her grandniece in 2023, both during President Biden’s administration.
However, the Department of Homeland Security pointed out that Afshar’s multiple trips back to Iran—her naturalization application indicates at least four such returns since she got her green card—may suggest her asylum claim lacks validity.
On Saturday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed that Afshar and her daughter are now in ICE custody, awaiting deportation. ICE arrested the two women in Los Angeles on Friday.
Rubio stated, “The Trump administration will not allow our country to become a base for foreigners who support an anti-American terrorist regime.”
The State Department has accused Afshar of propagating Iranian regime narratives while residing in the U.S., praising attacks on American personnel, referring to the U.S. as the “Great Satan,” and expressing support for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, described as a foreign terrorist organization.
As noted by the State Department, “Afshar Soleimani promoted this propaganda for Iran’s terrorist regime while enjoying a life of luxury in Los Angeles, as evidenced by her frequent posts on her recently deleted Instagram account.”
Afshar’s husband has also been barred from entering the United States, adding to the complexities of the family’s situation.
Narges Soleimani, the daughter of Soleimani, claimed in a statement to the BBC that the apprehended individuals have no link to her father and dismissed the U.S. State Department’s allegations as false. She accused the U.S. of creating “lies against a great man.”
In a prior speech, Soleimani had been characterized as both “an evil genius” and “a brilliant man,” a testament to the mixed perspectives surrounding his legacy.
