Senior Iranian UN diplomat requests asylum in Switzerland amid political and social unrest

In a possible first notable defection of a regime official, a senior Iranian diplomat from the country’s mission to the United Nations has applied for asylum in Switzerland, the opposition-aligned outlet Iran International reported Sunday. 

Alireza Jeyrani Hokmabad, a senior official in Geneva at Iran’s mission to the UN, requested asylum for himself and his family, the opposition-linked news agency reported, citing anonymous sources. 

Hokmabad held the rank of counsellor for mission, and served as the de facto deputy head of the Iranian mission to the UN. He served in Geneva since 2017, after arriving as an advisor and representing Iran in forums related to trade, development, and investment. 

A senior Iranian diplomat based at the United Nations’ European headquarters in Geneva has left his post and applied for asylum in Switzerland, diplomatic sources told Iran International, amid mounting political unrest in Iran.https://t.co/TyDMTk1JOp pic.twitter.com/ZeEPhWQwxW

— Iran International English (@IranIntl_En) January 18, 2026

Hokmabad requested asylum after the violent crackdown on protesters and the ongoing political and social unrest, fearing persecution should he return, the sources told Iran International. 

Iran International reported that several Iranian diplomats have contacted the governments of different European countries to request asylum, with some of those countries agreeing, despite the diplomats not being able to demonstrate a direct threat to their lives. 

While Iranian diplomats in Europe may be seeking asylum, Iranian-American activists are calling on the U.S. government to deport the family members of senior Iranian officials who are living in the country. 

Last week, the New York Post published a story about a group of Iranian-Americans who have petitioned the U.S. government to deport at least two family members related to the Islamic Republic’s regime. 

The petitions ask the government to deport Eissa Hashemi, the 43-year-old son of Masoumeh Ebtekar, who served as the spokeswoman for the Islamic militants who stormed the U.S. Embassy in Tehran during the Islamic Revolution in 1979, where they held 52 Americans hostage for 444 days. 

Hashemi has been living in the U.S. since 2010, the Post reported. 

The second petition called for the deportation of Fatemeh Ardeshir-Larijani, daughter of Ali Larijani, the former parliament speaker, who currently serves as secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council and functions as Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s “right-hand man.” 

Recent reports suggest that Ali Larijani is currently maneuvering to take over the government, should Khamenei be killed or otherwise incapacitated. 

Larijani’s daughter currently lives in Atlanta, Georgia, and works as an assistant professor at Emory University School of Medicine. 

“We, the Iranian people, demand the deportation of these individuals,” the petitions read. “They benefit from the wealth of the Iranian people and live safely in the United States, while their families rule a brutal dictatorship in Iran.”