Opposition campaigners have accused members of Iran's ruling elite of hypocrisy, alleging they use state wealth to fund their adult children's lives in the West while enforcing repression and economic hardship at home. The accusations come amid heightened tensions with the US, with President Donald Trump deploying a naval armada and considering strikes.
Among those criticised is Ali Larijani, Iran's top national security adviser, whose daughter lives in the US and whose nephews reside in Britain and Canada. Larijani, a vocal critic of Western values, is believed to have played a key role in the deadly crackdown on protests in January, which some sources say killed tens of thousands.
Anger is focused on the 'aghazadehs', or scions of the elite, who receive dollar stipends to study abroad. Alex Vatanka of the Middle East Institute said people are upset that these children are funded by the state. One IRGC commander claimed 4,000 children and relatives of regime officials live in Western countries.
Examples include Larijani's daughter, Fatemeh Ardeshir Larijani, who lost her job at Emory University after a petition called for her deportation. Former president Hassan Rouhani's niece, Maryam Fereydoun, works for Deutsche Bank in London. Eissa Hashemi, son of former hostage-taker Masoumeh Ebtekar, is a professor in Los Angeles.
Other cases include Mahdi Zarif, son of ex-foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who reportedly lived in a $16 million Manhattan home, and Elias Ghalibaf, son of former IRGC commander Mohammad-Baqer Ghalibaf, who lives in Australia. Kambiz Ghafouri, an Iranian activist, said over 90% of Iranians would support sending these children back.
