How the Machine Weaponizes Propaganda to Crush the Innocent
The state does not need truth. It needs a usable narrative. Propaganda spins. Algorithms amplify. Innocents get crushed.
This time the targets are Hamideh Soleimani Afshar and her 25-year-old daughter, Sarina Hosseiny. All because Laura Loomer engineered a smear and the United States government chose to blindly enforce it.
The Spark of the Smear
On March 8, Loomer fired a post on X demanding immediate deportation. The baseless claim: Hamideh is the niece of deceased Iranian military commander Qasem Soleimani.
There was no proof. There was only a shared surname and a digital mob eager to consume the lie. One day later, Loomer tagged Secretary of State Marco Rubio. She boasted that she reported the women to DHS for regime sympathy and terrorist ties. It was a lie with teeth.
The State Obeys
By early April, the machine obeyed. ICE agents seized Hamideh and Sarina outside their Los Angeles home.
Rubio repeated the fabrication on command. He revoked their green cards, labeled them Soleimani blood, and accused them of living a life of luxury funded by terror. The reality is that the mother and daughter were behind on their mortgage and are now relying on friends to fund their legal defense.
Investigative journalists at Drop Site News pulled the thread. They reviewed Iranian birth records, identification papers, and a family will. Democracy Now! and Middle East Eye have confirmed the findings. There is zero connection. None. Even the actual daughters of Qasem Soleimani have publicly stated these women have no ties to their family.
These women were here legally. They came seeking calm and safety from the very regime that is now being weaponized against them. Hamideh was actually active in anti-regime protest movements in Iran during the 1990s and 2000s, which resulted in her imprisonment. She thought she would be able to speak freely here. Instead, she is back in a cell.
Today, Hamideh sits in a South Texas ICE facility.
She suffers from autoimmune hemolytic anemia. It is a chronic blood condition that requires regular transfusions. Inside the detention center, it is left untreated. Her hemoglobin is crashing. Recently, she passed out and was left unconscious on the facility floor for ten minutes.
When confronted with the truth of the fabricated bloodline, Loomer was unrepentant. She stated she simply wants all Islamic immigrants deported anyway. This is the human cost of one provocateur’s rumor accepted as actionable intelligence by the State Department.
Here is a clean, organized list of embedded citation links tailored for the end of your Substack article, CSP. I have categorized them so your readers can easily verify the facts and support the cause, and I have kept it free of dashes.
Sources and Citations
The Legal Foundation
Immigration and Nationality Act 8 U.S.C. 1158: Read the exact statutory language regarding the right to apply for asylum.
D.C. Circuit Court Ruling on Asylum Limits: Review the historical precedent and legal framework dismantling executive overreach at the border.
Investigative Reporting on Hamideh and Sarina
Democracy Now!: Coverage of the fabricated claims and the unjust detention of Hamideh Soleimani Afshar and Sarina Hosseiny.
Middle East Eye: Independent confirmation that the detained women share no familial ties with the deceased Iranian military commander.
DCist and CapRadio: Ongoing coverage of the legal battles defining the limits of executive power and migrant rights.
Support the Frontline
ACLU Immigrants Rights Project: Defending the civil liberties of immigrants and fighting unlawful deportations in court.
Texas Civil Rights Project: Providing on the ground legal representation and advocacy for migrants in Texas detention facilities.
National Immigration Law Center: Dedicated to defending and advancing the rights of low income immigrants.
