Story perspectives

U.S. Detains Iranian Professor After Permanent-Status Revocation

8/19/2026

Summary

Story summary

U.S. immigration agents detained Maryam Tahmasebi, a professor, her husband Seyed Eissa Hashemi, and their teenage son in April after the State Department revoked their permanent-resident status.
The revocation cited Hashemi’s relation to Masoumeh Ebtekar, the 1979 Iranian hostage-crisis spokesperson.
From Dilley, Texas, Tahmasebi says four months in horrible detention have caused severe physical and mental health decline, which she calls ‘bloodline punishment.’

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Story summary

U.S. immigration agents detained Maryam Tahmasebi, a professor, her husband Seyed Eissa Hashemi, and their teenage son in April after the State Department revoked their permanent-resident status.
The revocation cited Hashemi’s relation to Masoumeh Ebtekar, the 1979 Iranian hostage-crisis spokesperson.
From Dilley, Texas, Tahmasebi says four months in horrible detention have caused severe physical and mental health decline, which she calls ‘bloodline punishment.’