A senior University of Arkansas professor has been stripped of her leadership role after allegations surfaced that she used official university letterhead to support an Iranian regime war criminal, praised Iran’s supreme leader, and repeatedly attacked Israel.

Shirin Saeidi, an assistant professor of political science and until recently the head of the university’s Middle East Studies program, was removed from her directorship on Friday. She remains employed as a professor while the university investigates her conduct, according to a school spokesperson.

The controversy centers on evidence that Saeidi used official University of Arkansas letterhead to advocate for the release of Hamid Nouri, an Iranian official convicted in Sweden in 2022 for his role in the mass execution of thousands of political prisoners at Tehran’s Gohardasht Prison in 1988. Nouri, then an assistant deputy prosecutor, was later freed as part of a prisoner swap between Iran and Sweden.

The letter was provided to the New York Post by the Alliance Against Islamic Regime of Iran Apologists, a U.S.-based group that has been pressing the university to take action. The organization also launched a Change.org petition that collected nearly 3,800 signatures calling for Saeidi’s removal.

In social media posts shared on X in November, she praised Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, offering prayers for his protection and calling him the leader who “kept Iran intact during the Israeli attack,” a reference made in the aftermath of Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 assault on Israel. In other posts, she labeled Israel a “terrorist state” and a “genocidal state.”

The fallout has drawn national attention. Mike Huckabee, the U.S. ambassador to Israel, condemned Saeidi’s remarks, describing them as “hate-filled antisemitic venom.”

“Whether Shirin Saeidi should be fired is a decision for the administration and the UA board,” Huckabee said, “but praising the Iranian leader — who calls not only for the slaughter of Jews but also for the destruction of America — makes me think this deranged professor would probably be better suited to a one-way ticket to Tehran.”

The University of Arkansas confirmed that Saeidi is no longer leading the Middle East Studies department and said it is reviewing her apparent use of official letterhead “in accordance with university policies.”

Iranian dissidents say the issue goes far beyond campus politics. Lawdan Bazargan, a former political prisoner in Iran and a human rights activist, accused Saeidi of helping sanitize the regime’s record.

“For forty-six years, Iranians have resisted the erasure of their memories and testimonies,” Bazargan said. “That is why the regime relies on ideologues and useful idiots in Western institutions to launder its image. Dr. Saeidi’s work is part of that machinery.”

Bazargan said the FBI contacted her in May regarding allegations tied to Saeidi, prompting closer scrutiny by activists.

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