Seven Iranian nationals linked to the regime in Tehran – including five The Post previously revealed were living lavish lifestyles in Los Angeles – have been targeted for removal from the U.S. as part of a sweeping State Department crackdown.
Among the most prominent cases is the son of Masoumeh Ebtekar, known as “Screaming Mary,” who served as a spokesperson for militants involved in the 1979 U.S. Embassy hostage crisis in Tehran.
ICE agents detained her son, Seyed Eissa Hashemi, along with his wife and child this week after The Post reported on their lifestyle in Los Angeles.
Family members initially reported him missing before authorities later confirmed he had been taken into custody.
Just a week earlier, two other Iranians with ties to slain general Qasem Soleimani were also detained.
Hamideh Soleimani Afshar, 47, and her daughter, Sarinasadat Hosseiny, 25, had their green cards revoked on April 3. Afshar is Soleimani’s niece, while Hosseiny is his grandniece.
Afshar had expressed support for the Iranian regime in public posts, including praise for its leadership and rhetoric critical of the United States.
In a separate case, Dr. Fatemeh Ardeshir-Larijani – the daughter of a senior Iranian official – and her husband, Seyed Kalantar Motamedi, were also removed from the country amid mounting political pressure.
Ardeshir-Larijani had been working as an assistant professor at Emory University’s Winship Cancer Institute in Atlanta before facing backlash over her role.
The coordinated crackdown is being driven by Rubio, who has sought to prevent regime-linked figures from benefiting from life in the United States.
The moves come as Washington ramps up efforts to root out individuals with ties to the Iranian regime, with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents detaining some and revoking immigration status for others.
The Trump administration has made it a priority to oust anyone connected to the anti-American regime, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio warning the U.S. “will never allow America to become a home for foreign nationals tied to anti-American terrorist regimes.”
“America can never become home for anti-American terrorists or their families – and under the Trump Administration, it never will,” he said.