Latest news with #MehranMakariSaheli
The Herald Scotland
9 hours ago
- Politics
- The Herald Scotland
ICE arrested 11 Iranians in the U.S. as Middle East tensions flared
The arrests also come as some Americans fear violence in the U.S. amid the conflict with Iran. Mayors from New York City to Los Angeles have said that they are watching for any threats to public safety. Among the people arrested, officials said, were: Mehran Makari Saheli, a 56-year-old convicted of illegal firearm possession and former member of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps; Ribvar Karimi, a former Iranian army sniper who failed to adjust his immigration status; and Yousef Mehridehno, who was labeled by Homeland Security as a "suspected terrorist" who lied on a visa application. Karimi had an Islamic Republic of Iran Army identification card in his possession when he was arrested, federal officials said. "We have been saying we are getting the worst of the worst out--and we are," said Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin. "We don't wait until a military operation to execute; we proactively deliver on President Trump's mandate to secure the homeland." The arrests happened all around the country. ICE Buffalo arrested on Monday a 65-year-old who was convicted of "criminal impersonation and practicing as an attorney," federal officials said. ICE San Francisco arrested on Sunday a 62-year-old who was previously sentenced to 10 years in prison for a drug conviction, according to officials. An Iranian American group slammed the apparent crackdown in light of the war, saying the White House had "weaponized" immigration authorities to go after political enemies. "We are deeply concerned that the Department of Homeland Security will respond to geopolitical tensions abroad with racial profiling and efforts to undermine the civil liberties of individuals of Iranian heritage in the United States," said Ryan Costello, policy director for the National Iranian American Council, a Washington, D.C.-based organization that advocates for improving American relations with Iran. "That is wrong and un-American. It's threats and legitimate intelligence that need to drive these kind of enforcement actions, not security theater." It's fairly rare for Iranians living in the U.S. to run afoul of immigration authorities, data shows. Of nearly 113,500 people arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement authorities in fiscal year 2024, 68 were from Iran. 47 of the people arrested then had criminal convictions; the rest had immigration violations, according to federal data. The number of Iranians arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement in recent days amounts to 16% of the total number of Iranian nationals arrested in all of fiscal year 2024, according to federal data.
USA Today
11 hours ago
- Politics
- USA Today
Feds: ICE arrested 11 Iranians in the U.S. as Middle East tensions flared
The people arrested included a former Iranian army sniper and man sentenced to 10 years in prison for a drug conviction. Some say the arrests are political. Federal agents arrested 11 Iranians living in the U.S. over the past few days, Department of Homeland Security officials announced on Tuesday. Almost all the arrests were made on Sunday after U.S. military planes bombed key Iranian nuclear sites. President Donald Trump has said he ordered the strikes to put a stop to the nuclear threat posed by the "world's number one state sponsor of terror." The arrests also come as some Americans fear violence in the U.S. amid the conflict with Iran. Mayors from New York City to Los Angeles have said that they are watching for any threats to public safety. Among the people arrested, officials said, were: Mehran Makari Saheli, a 56-year-old convicted of illegal firearm possession and former member of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps; Ribvar Karimi, a former Iranian army sniper who failed to adjust his immigration status; and Yousef Mehridehno, who was labeled by Homeland Security as a 'suspected terrorist' who lied on a visa application. Karimi had an Islamic Republic of Iran Army identification card in his possession when he was arrested, federal officials said. 'We have been saying we are getting the worst of the worst out—and we are,' said Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin. 'We don't wait until a military operation to execute; we proactively deliver on President Trump's mandate to secure the homeland.' The arrests happened all around the country. ICE Buffalo arrested on Monday a 65-year-old who was convicted of 'criminal impersonation and practicing as an attorney,' federal officials said. ICE San Francisco arrested on Sunday a 62-year-old who was previously sentenced to 10 years in prison for a drug conviction, according to officials. An Iranian American group slammed the apparent crackdown in light of the war, saying the White House had 'weaponized' immigration authorities to go after political enemies. 'We are deeply concerned that the Department of Homeland Security will respond to geopolitical tensions abroad with racial profiling and efforts to undermine the civil liberties of individuals of Iranian heritage in the United States,' said Ryan Costello, policy director for the National Iranian American Council, a Washington, D.C.-based organization that advocates for improving American relations with Iran. 'That is wrong and un-American. It's threats and legitimate intelligence that need to drive these kind of enforcement actions, not security theater." It's fairly rare for Iranians living in the U.S. to run afoul of immigration authorities, data shows. Of nearly 113,500 people arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement authorities in fiscal year 2024, 68 were from Iran. 47 of the people arrested then had criminal convictions; the rest had immigration violations, according to federal data. The number of Iranians arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement in recent days amounts to 16% of the total number of Iranian nationals arrested in all of fiscal year 2024, according to federal data.
Yahoo
19 hours ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
ICE arrests 11 Iranian nationals in 48 hours
In its latest crackdown against illegal immigration, federal agents arrested 11 Iranian foreign nationals in 48 hours, including one watchlisted individual — part of a series of targeted operations spanning eight states and nine cities nationwide. Among those arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement since Sunday, June 22, is Mehran Makari Saheli, at his home near St. Paul, Minnesota. ICE officials say Saheli is a former member of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), an elite branch of Iran's armed forces. They said the detainee has "admitted connections to Hezbollah," a U.S.-designated foreign terrorist organization backed by Iran. ICE said that five of those arrested possessed previous criminal convictions ranging from grand larceny to drug and firearm possessions. The Department of Homeland Security says Yousef Mehridehno had been living in America illegally for nearly 8 years when federal authorities determined he lied on a visa application. Roughly four months after the Iranian foreign national was added to the U.S. known or suspected terrorist list in February, he was apprehended by federal agents Sunday in central Mississippi, just outside of Jackson. Officials have not linked these arrests to any specific terrorism plots and the Department of Homeland Security has stated that there are no current, credible threats to the U.S. homeland, despite a heightened security environment following U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear sites over the weekend. But all 11 Iranians have been charged or accused of crimes beyond civil immigration violations, according to ICE officials, who say the arrested men represent a threat to public safety. While arresting Ribvar Karmi in northern Alabama on Sunday, the Department of Homeland Security says federal agents found an Islamic Republic of Iran Army identification card on his person. According to ICE officials, Karimi purportedly served as an Iranian Army sniper from 2018 to 2021 and entered the U.S. in October 2024 on a K-1 visa, reserved for migrants engaged to be married to American citizens. Karmi is now detained in ICE custody, where officials say he will remain pending removal proceedings. In addition to the 11 Iranian nationals who were arrested, federal agents have also arrested U.S. citizen Linet Vartaniann, who was taken into custody on federal charges of threatening a law enforcement officer and harboring an illegal alien. ICE officials contend the woman threatened to open fire if immigration enforcement officers entered her home. According to ICE, the defendant threatened federal agents during an encounter on Sunday, warning she would go outside and "shoot officers in the head." ICE officials tell CBS News that the arrests since Sunday are part of the Trump administration's latest crackdown on illegal immigration. Federal officials have aimed to dramatically ramp up immigration arrests, with average daily arrests climbing from 660 in President Trump's first 100 days to 1,200 in June — and the White House says its target is 3,000 arrests per day. "We have been saying we are getting the worst of the worst out — and we are," DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement to CBS News. "We don't wait until a military operation to execute; we proactively deliver on President Trump's mandate to secure the homeland." According to U.S. government data, last fiscal year, 68 Iranian foreign nationals were arrested by ICE — including 47 with criminal convictions. ICE arrested some 113,000 people in total over that period, most of whom were from Mexico or Central America. This weekend, the Department of Homeland Security activated its National Terrorism Advisory System just hours after the United States' attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities. The strikes came after a days-long Israeli campaign against Iran, resulting in Iranian attacks on Israel — though Mr. Trump said Monday the two sides had agreed to a ceasefire. Current and former intelligence officials caution that America is on high alert for physical or cyber retaliation, telling CBS News that there is a growing concern about the potential for homegrown extremism, including lone attacks inspired by Iranian calls to violence. On Monday, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem told reporters that homeland security officials are trying to "get in front of" threats to the U.S. by "working with our local governors and law enforcement to make sure that they recognize potential threats or suspicious activities." Probed on reports of potential Hezbollah sleeper cells, the secretary said only that the U.S. has seen "some [that have] gone overseas for a short period of time, become radicalized and come back." She added, "We have to watch for all of it, and to be diligent on all of it, and we'll continue to do so." Israel-Iran ceasefire in precarious position, Trump claims Biden let Iran sleeper cells into U.S. How prepared are American forces for attacks from Iran? Sen. Schumer slams Trump administration over postponed Israel-Iran conflict briefings
Daily Mail
20 hours ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Iranian army sniper among 'terrorists' caught living illegally in US as Trump warns of sleeper cells
Two suspected terrorists are among 11 Iranians in the US illegally arrested by ICE since Sunday, with ties to terror group Hezbollah and Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Among them is Ribvar Karimi- who served as an Iranian Army sniper from 2018 to 2021. He was tracked down in rural Alabama. When ICE agents found in him in the town of Locust Fork Sunday, he had an Islamic Republic of Iran Army identification card, DHS claimed. Karimi entered the country legally on a K-1 visa, for foreigners engaged to be married to Americans, in October under the Biden administration. He married his bride, Morgan Gardener, in January this year. However, Karimi failed to adjust his status, making his presence in the US illegal. In Minnesota, agents nabbed Mehran Makari Saheli, 56, a former member of off the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps with admitted connections to Hezbollah, the agency alleged. He already had a conviction for felon in possession of a firearm and served 15 months in prison. Despite being ordered out of the country by a judge in June 28, 2022, he evaded authorities. Both men are now in ICE custody pending removal. Karimi's American wife insists he loves America and is a proud immigrant. 'This man loves America, the first purchase he made when he got here was an American Flag,' Morgan Gardner told a local station. 'If he was here on bad intentions, he wouldn't have done that, he wouldn't be willing to walk around with a flag, knowing he could get deported and sent back to a country where he could be killed for that.' She is seven months pregnant and fears she'll have to give birth alone. Their arrests come as it's been revealed at least 1,500 Iranians entered the US during the Biden years. The apprehensions have taken place since Sunday in sweeping Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation, amid growing warnings about potential terrorist 'sleeper cells' targeting the US. President Donald Trump warned there could be Iranian terrorist sleeper cells plotting against Americans. 'And among everything else, (Biden) let in a lot of super cells, many from Iran,' the Republican wrongly said, meaning sleeper cells. Over the weekend, Department of Homeland Security agents went 'full throttle,' arresting citizens of the Islamic republic as that country threatened to retaliate against the US following the bombing of three nuclear sites in Iran. 'Under Secretary (Kristi) Noem, DHS has been full throttle on identifying and arresting known or suspected terrorists and violent extremists that illegally entered this country, came in through Biden's fraudulent parole programs or otherwise,' DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a press release Tuesday. 'We have been saying we are getting the worst of the worst out—and we are.' At least half of them were allowed to stay in the US, despite citizens of Iran being considered special interest aliens due to the possibility of being security threats. Mehrzad Asadi Eidivand, who had been ordered to leave the US 12 years ago by an immigration judge, had also been convicted of threatening a law enforcement officer and being an alien in possession of a firearm. Eidivand entered through the southern border in June 2012, DHS said, and he was arrested in Tempe, Arizona Sunday. Armed with a 9mm pistol when ICE agents caught up to him, Behzad Sepehrian Bahary Nejad was arrested in Texas. After entering the US on a student visa in 2016, Sepehrian was arrested a year later in the Houston area for chocking a family member. His wife was able to get a retraining order against him after he threatened her and he family back in Iran. The University of Texas student was ordered out of the country in 2019. Another man with suspected ties to terror was taken into custody in Mississippi. Yousef Mehridehno had been stripped of his lawful permanent resident status in October 2017, and allowed to remain in the US during Trump's first term, after authorities learned he had lied on his application. Additional apprehensions were made Houston, Colorado, San Fransisco and San Diego. Aside from the 11 Iranian arrested, an American woman Linet Vartaniann was also arrested for threatening to shoot ICE agents in Arizona.
