The United States has taken into custody two relatives of the late Iranian military commander Qasem Soleimani, according to a statement from the State Department. Hamideh Soleimani Afshar, identified as the niece of Soleimani, and her daughter are currently held by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), pending deportation.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the revocation of their lawful permanent resident status, alleging the women entered the U.S. under fraudulent asylum claims. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) stated that Soleimani Afshar arrived on a tourist visa in 2015, was granted asylum in 2019, and obtained a green card in 2021. Officials claim her subsequent trips to Iran undermined her asylum application.
"Her trips to Iran illustrate her asylum claims were fraudulent," the DHS said in its statement.
Rubio further accused Soleimani Afshar of being "an outspoken supporter of the totalitarian, terrorist regime in Iran" and promoting state propaganda via social media. Her daughter, Sarinasadat Hosseiny, entered on a student visa in 2015, receiving asylum in 2019 and a green card in 2023.
However, the general's daughter, Narjes Soleimani, has vehemently denied the U.S. allegations. In a public rebuttal, she asserted the detained individuals have no connection to her father and condemned the State Department's claims as fabrications.
"The individuals arrested in the U.S. have no connection whatsoever to Martyr Soleimani and the claims made by the U.S. State Department are false," she stated.
Qasem Soleimani, the former head of Iran's elite Quds Force, was killed in a U.S. drone strike ordered by President Donald Trump in January 2020. The operation targeted Soleimani at Baghdad International Airport, escalating tensions between Washington and Tehran.
In recent remarks, Trump referenced the strike, describing Soleimani as "an evil genius" and suggesting Iran might be in a stronger position today had the general survived. The arrest of his relatives marks a new chapter in the ongoing geopolitical friction, with U.S. officials framing the action as a move against immigration fraud and support for adversarial regimes.