Key facts
- Maryam Tahmasebi, her husband Seyed Eissa Hashemi, and their son, all US permanent residents, were detained in April.
- Their legal status was revoked due to Hashemi's mother's involvement in the 1979 Iran hostage crisis.
- Tahmasebi described the detention as 'hell' and reported deteriorating physical and mental health.
- The family's lawyers state no evidence of national security threats or wrongdoing has been presented by the government.
- The US Department of Homeland Security denied the family's request for voluntary departure.
- A federal judge has temporarily blocked the family's deportation.
An Iranian academic, Maryam Tahmasebi, has described her family's months-long detention in Texas as 'hell,' accusing the US government of 'bloodline punishment' after revoking their permanent residency. Tahmasebi, her husband Seyed Eissa Hashemi, and their teenage son, who were lawful permanent residents, were detained in April. The State Department cited Hashemi's mother, Masoumeh Ebtekar, a former spokesperson for the group that seized American hostages in 1979, as the reason for revoking their status.
Tahmasebi, writing from a detention center, stated that their physical and mental health have deteriorated. She argued that her husband is being punished for his mother's actions before he was even born, and that she sought a life defined by her own actions, not those of others nearly 50 years ago. The family legally entered the US in 2014 and became permanent residents in 2016.
Their lawyers assert that the government has not presented any evidence of wrongdoing or national security threats. Maria Kari, part of the legal team, stated that the State Department has not charged the family under any national security provision of immigration laws. The US Department of Homeland Security denied the family's request for voluntary departure in July, suggesting they use an app-based program for non-citizens to leave the country.
The decision to revoke the family's status comes amid increased US hostilities with Iran and enforcement actions against relatives of Iranian officials. The US government has also reportedly terminated the legal status of other individuals linked to Iranian officials, though some of these claims have later been disputed.