Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced Saturday that two relatives of the late Qasem Soleimani had their green cards revoked and were in custody.
Soleimani, a notorious commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a crucial figure in providing advanced IED components that were used against American troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, was killed in a Jan. 2020 strike. The State Department said Soleimani’s niece and her daughter had been living a “lavish lifestyle in Los Angeles.”
“Last night, the niece and grandniece of deceased Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Major General Qasem Soleimani were arrested by federal agents following Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s termination of their lawful permanent resident (LPR) status,” a statement released Saturday said. “Hamideh Soleimani Afshar and her daughter are now in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. As identified by both press reporting and her own social media commentary, Soleimani Afshar is an outspoken supporter of the totalitarian, terrorist regime in Iran.”
Until recently, Hamideh Soleimani Afshar and her daughter were green card holders living lavishly in the United States.
Afshar is the niece of deceased Iranian Major General Qasem Soleimani. She is also an outspoken supporter of the Iranian regime who celebrated attacks on…
— Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) April 4, 2026
Should the U.S. revoke green cards of individuals with ties to foreign terrorist organizations?
“While living in the United States, she 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 statement continued.
President Donald Trump announced that the United States military commenced Operation Epic Fury in a video posted on Truth Social early in the morning of Feb. 28.
“The Trump Administration will not allow our country to become a home for foreign nationals who support anti-American terrorist regimes,” Rubio said in a Saturday post on X.
Rubio called for the visas of foreign students who supported Hamas to be revoked during an Oct. 17, 2023, appearance on “The Ingraham Angle” while commenting on pro-Hamas demonstrations that took place at multiple universities and colleges in the days after the Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas that killed over 1,200 people in Israel.
“The law says if you are a supporter of a terrorist organization you shouldn’t even have a visa,” Rubio told Fox News host Laura Ingraham during that appearance. “So now, once you get that visa, if you identify yourself as a Hamas supporter, then you should have your visa canceled and you should be removed from the country.”
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact [email protected].
