The niece and grand-niece of the deceased commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, Gen Qasem Soleimani, have been arrested, the US state department has said. Hamideh Soleimani Afshar and her daughter's lawful US permanent resident status was revoked by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, a statement released on Saturday stated. However, Soleimani’s daughter has called the state department's claims false, asserting the arrested individuals 'have no connection whatsoever' to her father.
Soleimani, who was Iran’s most powerful military commander, was killed in 2020 in a US air strike in Iraq ordered by then-President Donald Trump. In a social media post, Rubio stated that the two women are in the custody of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), pending removal from the country. He alleged that Soleimani Afshar and her daughter were 'green card holders living lavishly in the United States'.
After entering the US on a tourist visa in 2015, Soleimani Afshar was granted asylum in 2019 and became a green card holder in 2021, according to the US Department of Homeland Security. In her naturalization application filed for 2025, she disclosed that she had visited Iran four times since receiving her green card, leading authorities to claim her asylum application was fraudulent. The DHS added that Soleimani Afshar's daughter, Sarinasadat Hosseiny, initially arrived in the US on a student visa in 2015 and later received asylum and a green card.
The state department described Soleimani Afshar as an 'outspoken supporter of the totalitarian, terrorist regime in Iran,' accusing her of promoting 'Iranian regime propaganda' on social media. Meanwhile, Soleimani Afshar's husband has also been barred from entering the US, although he was not named in the statement. In response to the arrests, Narjes Soleimani, Soleimani's daughter, declared: 'The individuals arrested in the US have no connection whatsoever to Martyr Soleimani and the claims made by the US State Department are false.' She further contended that the US had 'become so weak and insignificant' and was 'fabricating lies against a great figure.'
Soleimani, who was Iran’s most powerful military commander, was killed in 2020 in a US air strike in Iraq ordered by then-President Donald Trump. In a social media post, Rubio stated that the two women are in the custody of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), pending removal from the country. He alleged that Soleimani Afshar and her daughter were 'green card holders living lavishly in the United States'.
After entering the US on a tourist visa in 2015, Soleimani Afshar was granted asylum in 2019 and became a green card holder in 2021, according to the US Department of Homeland Security. In her naturalization application filed for 2025, she disclosed that she had visited Iran four times since receiving her green card, leading authorities to claim her asylum application was fraudulent. The DHS added that Soleimani Afshar's daughter, Sarinasadat Hosseiny, initially arrived in the US on a student visa in 2015 and later received asylum and a green card.
The state department described Soleimani Afshar as an 'outspoken supporter of the totalitarian, terrorist regime in Iran,' accusing her of promoting 'Iranian regime propaganda' on social media. Meanwhile, Soleimani Afshar's husband has also been barred from entering the US, although he was not named in the statement. In response to the arrests, Narjes Soleimani, Soleimani's daughter, declared: 'The individuals arrested in the US have no connection whatsoever to Martyr Soleimani and the claims made by the US State Department are false.' She further contended that the US had 'become so weak and insignificant' and was 'fabricating lies against a great figure.'
