Children of Iran’s ruling elite are studying, teaching, and building influential academic careers across the United States, the NY Post has revealed.

At institutions ranging from the University of Massachusetts to Union College in New York and George Washington University in Washington, D.C., sons and daughters of powerful Iranian officials have secured positions as students, professors, and researchers.

Among them is Leila Khatami, a mathematics professor at Union College, and the daughter of former Iranian president Mohammad Khatami. Though often labeled a “reformist,” her father remained part of a system that enforced repression and human rights abuses. Amid the ongoing U.S. airstrikes on Iran, Khatami’s faculty profile was quietly removed from the college’s website.

In Atlanta, Fatemeh Ardeshir-Larijani—daughter of the late Ali Larijani, Iran’s de facto ruler when the war began—previously worked at Emory University’s prestigious Winship Cancer Institute. She reportedly came to the United States for cancer treatment before later joining the faculty. The university parted ways with her earlier this year following mounting pressure from activists.

The pattern extends far beyond a handful of cases. Experts estimate that between 4,000 and 5,000 relatives of senior Iranian officials—often referred to as Aghzadehs, or “noble-born”—are currently living in the United States. Many occupy positions in academia, medicine, and research, fields that shape public discourse and policy.

Zahra Mohaghegh, a professor of nuclear engineering at the University of Illinois, is both the daughter of a prominent cleric and a relative of the Larijani family. Eissa Hashemi, a professor in Los Angeles, is the son of Masoumeh Ebtekar—a former Iranian vice president and spokesperson during the 1979 hostage crisis, when American diplomats were held captive for 444 days.

At George Washington University, Ehsan Nobakht, a medical professor specializing in kidney disease, is the son of a former senior official in Iran’s health ministry.

No direct evidence has been presented suggesting wrongdoing by the individuals themselves.

Petitions calling for investigations—and in some cases deportations—have gathered tens of thousands of signatures. One petition targeting Ardeshir-Larijani alone amassed more than 150,000 supporters.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)