On Saturday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the termination of lawful permanent resident status for three Iranian individuals linked to Masoumeh Ebtekar, a notorious spokesperson for the militants responsible for the 1979 U.S. Embassy hostage crisis.
Seyed Eissa Hashemi, Maryam Tahmasebi, and their son have been detained by federal agents and are now under the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as they face removal from the country, according to a statement from the State Department released.
Ebtekar, infamously dubbed “Screaming Mary,” played a vital role in orchestrating propaganda for the hostage-takers, facilitating staged interviews that misrepresented the treatment of captives held for over a year. She eventually married one of the perpetrators and held influential positions in Iran’s government, including a vice presidential role from 2017 to 2021.
Hashemi, who is Ebtekar’s son, along with his family entered the U.S. on visas issued during the Obama administration in 2014. They received LPR status in June 2016 via the Diversity Immigrant Visa Program.
This issuance came amid heightened tensions following the seizure of U.S. Navy vessels by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard. The Trump administration subsequently halted the issuance of new diversity visas.
“I have recently revoked their lawful permanent resident status, and they are now in ICE custody, awaiting their deportation,” Secretary Rubio noted on X. “Her family should never have enjoyed the privilege of living here. America cannot be a refuge for anti-American terrorists or their relatives, and under the Trump Administration, it never will.”
This action follows similar measures taken by Rubio against other relatives of notorious Iranian officials earlier this month. On April 4, he revoked the LPR status of Hamideh Soleimani Afshar, niece of the late General Qasem Soleimani, along with her daughter, both of whom are now in ICE custody pending removal. Additionally, he terminated the legal status of Fatemeh Ardeshir-Larijani, daughter of a previous senior Iranian official, and her husband, prohibiting their entry into the U.S. as well.
