Iranian expats cheer US deportations of regime-linked nationals

Exiled Iranian warns that regime-linked figures pose national security threat to the US.

By World Israel News Staff

Iranians living in exile in the United States are praising the Trump administration for deporting individuals linked to Iran’s Islamic regime and are calling on authorities to continue the effort.

Several high-profile Iranian expatriates with ties to the regime — including relatives of slain former Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani — have recently come under scrutiny for residing in the U.S. while publicly expressing support for Tehran.

Among them are Hamideh Soleimani Afshar, Soleimani’s niece, and her daughter, Sarinasadat Hosseiny. The two drew attention after posting photos on social media depicting themselves in immodest clothing and provocative poses, which would likely lead to their arrest if they were living in the Islamic Republic. They also reportedly shared messages supporting the regime and praising attacks on American troops.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested the pair in Los Angeles earlier this month, revoking their green cards.

Critics argue that such cases highlight a broader issue of regime-affiliated individuals benefiting from freedoms abroad while supporting policies that restrict those same freedoms at home.

“The previous administration just closed its eyes to this,” said Morgan Mahdizadeh, who fled Iran at the age of 27, in an interview with the New York Post.

“Now we are really grateful that the Trump administration is taking action against these people—and this is just the tip of the iceberg,” Mahdizadeh said.

She added that individuals tied to the regime pose a potential national security risk.

“They are here to influence policy, they are here to steal technology, and that’s a national security threat,” she said.

“We are incredibly happy to see that the U.S. is finally deporting these regime-linked individuals and sending them back to the very system they helped build for Iranian citizens.”

Other prominent cases include Fatemeh Ardeshir-Larijani, the daughter of senior Iranian politician Ali Larijani, who was assassinated in the early days of the U.S.-Israel war with Iran that began in late February.

Ardeshir-Larijani, who had been working as an assistant professor at a university in Georgia, was dismissed from her position and had her green card revoked after her family ties to the regime became public.