Sanctioned Iranian leader denounces US, but his daughter lives here

Ali Larijani likely regards himself as a principled man. As the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, he remains a loyal foot soldier of the Islamic Republic, boasting a lifetime of service to the regime in a range of senior leadership positions. Among other roles, he was a speaker of Iran’s parliament, a minister of culture and Islamic guidance, and a head of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), the regime’s state-run media and propaganda conglomerate. He has described Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as a “divine man,” while routinely casting the United States as the “great Satan.”

Yet Larijani does not publicly discuss an inconvenient fact: One of his own daughters has made the great Satan her home. Until last week, Fatemeh Ardeshir-Larijani served as an assistant professor at Emory University’s School of Medicine, where she specialized in thoracic oncology, including lung cancer, mesothelioma, and thymic tumors, according to an archived page of the school’s website. The university let her go without citing a reason, merely stating that since “this is a personnel matter, we are unable to provide additional information.”

But the probable rationale isn’t hard to discern: While Dr. Ardeshir-Larijani taught life-saving medicine, her father has been presiding over an ongoing massacre that has claimed as many as 30,000 lives. On January 15, the Trump administration sanctioned Ali Larijani, describing him as one of the “architects” of Tehran’s “brutal crackdown on peaceful demonstrators.” According to the U.S. Treasury Department, “Larijani is responsible for coordinating the response to the protests on behalf of the Supreme Leader of Iran and has publicly called for Iranian security forces to use force to repress peaceful protesters.”

For years, Dr. Ardeshir-Larijani labored largely in obscurity, avoiding the public limelight and issuing no public statements about her father. But fresh U.S. scrutiny of Ali Larijani has shattered her seclusion. A petition on Change.org calling for her deportation has accumulated more than 100,000 signatures. Protests have occurred at Emory. And the White House has announced that it is now reviewing the immigration status granted to Iranian nationals who received immigration benefits under the Biden administration.

Dr. Ardeshir-Larijani’s views about the atrocities unfolding in her country of birth remain unknown. She may very well deplore the Islamic Republic and her father’s conduct. She may very well regard herself as a fugitive from a repressive regime, from a blood-soaked parent, and from an ailing economy. If this is the case, her predicament deserves some sympathy.

However, opponents of Dr. Ardeshir-Larijani’s residence in the United States have a different view. The doctor, after all, enjoys a degree of freedom and prosperity that her compatriots in Iran completely lack. For her to benefit from U.S. liberties while ordinary Iranians suffer reeks of entitlement and cynicism, say critics.

At the same time, under the Trump administration’s travel ban, Iranian immigrants and non-immigrants cannot enter the United States. Even before the travel ban, it could take years for Iranians to obtain a visa. It is unclear what security protocols or precautions Washington undertook, if any, when Dr. Ardeshir-Larijani first arrived in America.

More poignantly, Dr. Ardeshir-Larijani’s presence exposes both the hypocrisy of her father and the Islamic Republic’s corruption. Even as they fiercely castigate the United States and Western mores, officials in Tehran tacitly recognize that America offers its citizens the opportunity of a better life. Protesters continue to swarm Iranian streets precisely because they perceive this reality.

Yet Ali Larijani likely regards himself as a principled man. If so, he could consider standing up for his beliefs and publicly urge his daughter to return home. One day, when Iranian protesters prevail, the regime falls, and her father is brought to justice, Dr. Ardeshir-Larijani can come back to the United States. At that time, she can publicly affirm her gratitude for her adopted country — and celebrate, along with all Americans, the dawn of a free Iran.

Tzvi Kahn is a research fellow and senior editor at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Follow him on X @TzviKahn.