IRGC Intelligence Denies Dual Citizenship of Rouhani and Issuance of Green Cards to Iranian Officials

According to a member of the parliamentary board, the Intelligence Organization of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has denied claims by some representatives regarding the issuance of 2500 green cards to Iranians during nuclear negotiations and the dual citizenship of Hassan Rouhani. Alireza Rahimi, a member of the parliamentary board, stated on Friday, November 4, in an interview with ISNA news agency that the IRGC's Intelligence Organization formally addressed the parliament, refuting the statements made by some representatives about the dual citizenship of certain officials of the Islamic Republic, including Hassan Rouhani. He did not specify which other officials' dual citizenship claims were denied in this letter. Abolfazl Torabi, a member of the parliamentary inquiry committee regarding dual citizenship managers, had previously stated on Sunday, August 19, that one 'very important and high-ranking' official acquired British citizenship during their studies in Scotland and still holds this citizenship. Mahmoud Vaezi, the head of the Iranian President's office, denied this claim. Earlier, Mojtaba Zolnour, a representative from Qom, had claimed that Rouhani's son holds British and Canadian citizenship, but Hesamoddin Ashna, an advisor to the president, refuted this claim. Some websites have reported that Majid Rouhani is Rouhani's son. Additionally, according to reports from some websites, one of Rouhani's daughters resides in Austria. Rouhani's office has neither confirmed nor denied these reports. Rahimi also announced that the IRGC's Intelligence Organization denied the claim of granting 2500 green cards to Iranian citizens, including the children of some officials during the nuclear negotiations. He stated that a month ago, Mohammad Javad Zarif, the foreign minister, had declared in the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission that 'this issue is fundamentally and essentially a lie.' According to Rahimi, the IRGC's Intelligence Organization denied this issue six months after it was raised, and this institution and the judiciary had previously remained silent about this accusation, with only the Ministry of Intelligence denying the claim from the outset. This parliamentary board member accused the IRGC's Intelligence Organization of effectively protecting the accuser by declaring the confidentiality of this letter instead of referring the accuser to court. He stated that 'these claims have criminal implications' and called for the Attorney General and the Tehran prosecutor to pursue these statements. Mojtaba Zolnour, a member of parliament and a member of the Stability Front, stated in an interview with Etemad newspaper: 'When Mr. Obama decided to give a boost during the JCPOA discussions, he granted citizenship to 2500 Iranians, and some officials competed to ensure their children were among these 2500.' These remarks sparked widespread reactions, and Fox News in the U.S. also reported on his statements. Donald Trump, the U.S. President, referred to the Fox News report, stating: 'It has just been revealed that the Obama administration granted citizenship to 2500 Iranians, including government officials, during their disastrous negotiations [over the nuclear deal]. How excessive and (bad) is that?' However, Jeff Prescott, a National Security Council official during the Obama administration, responded to Trump's tweet, stating that 'this accusation is ridiculous and false.'