The administrative threat
According to a report published Wednesday by the news site The Free Press, the US State Department has opened an administrative investigation targeting Trita Parsi, a 51-year-old Iranian-Swedish political analyst.
Born in Iran and raised in Sweden, this international relations specialist has lived in the United States for more than twenty-five years as the holder of a permanent resident card, a status which until now allowed him to reside legally on American territory while directing the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, a group think tank based in Washington advocating a more restrained foreign policy.
A Trump administration official justified this approach with reference to Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s efforts to counter what Washington considers harmful Iranian influence on American soil.
“Le secrétaire a été très clair”
declared this official to the media, adding:
Anyone seeking to weaken the United States is subject to intense scrutiny.
This same official suggested that the individuals targeted by these measures could include those
“supporting our adversaries and whose activities further their agenda while compromising our security”
a formulation which directly targets dissident voices critical of the current war policy against Tehran and which risks leading to effective expulsion from the territory for the analyst.
Legal preparations and institutional mobilization
Furthermore, the report reveals that the American authorities have already initiated expulsion procedures against several holders of permanent resident cards whom they consider to have shown sympathy towards Iran or supported its positions.
Trita Parsi and her colleagues at the institute view this investigation as a
“serious threat”
for his future on American territory and for his ability to continue his research work on foreign policy.
Additionally, Quincy Institute Executive Director Lora Lumpe informed the organization’s employees and donors in early April that the board chair had agreed to fully fund the legal preparations necessary to defend the analyst against any expulsion attempts.
According to an internal memo consulted by the media, the institute is currently recruiting a lawyer specializing in immigration, who would have recommended immediately preparing an appeal for habeas corpus in order to be ready if Parsi were to be placed in detention by the migration authorities without notice.
Background to the US-Iran War
This report comes in a context of acute military tensions between Washington and Tehran, while the United States has carried out new strikes against Iran in recent hours.
This escalation follows Tehran’s announcement that it had shot down a US Army Apache helicopter earlier this week above the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic passage now closed by the Iranian authorities.
According to the reports communicated by the Iranian authorities, more than 3,000 people have been killed since the start of the war, while at least 13 American soldiers have lost their lives during Iranian retaliatory strikes, according to official figures from the Pentagon.
Tehran has responded by targeting Israel as well as US allies in the Persian Gulf, while Pakistan continues its mediation efforts aimed at transforming a fragile ceasefire, which came into force on April 8, into a broader, lasting peace agreement after several months of conflict triggered on February 28 by massive American-Israeli strikes.
Furthermore, subsequent discussions in Islamabad between the parties have failed to reach a final agreement at this stage, although Pakistani diplomats continue to work to consolidate the current truce.
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