A Michigan student confronted Democratic U.S.Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed over his position on Iran during a town hall Wednesday, invoking his family's stated persecution by the Iranian regime before repeatedly pressing the candidate to say whether he stood with Iranians opposing the government.Iman Dashti, who identified himself as Persian, told El-Sayed during a town hall at the University of Michigan that members of his family had suffered under Iran's government."My cousin was hunted in the streets of Iran by the IRGC because her hijab wasn't on right," Dashti said.
He also alleged that her uncle had been sentenced to death and received 50 lashes under the Iranian government.ABDUL EL-SAYED PROTESTED AGAINST 'EX-TERRORISTS' WHO CONVERTED TO CHRISTIANITY, UNEARTHED REPORT REVEALSUS Democratic Senate candidate from Michigan Abdul El-Sayed speaks with reporters during a Student Meet and Greet at the Michigan Theatre in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on August 26, 2026.(JEFF KOWALSKY / AFP via Getty Images)Dashti then confronted El-Sayed over leaked audio from earlier this year in which he said he did not want to comment on the death of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei because "there are a lot of people in Dearborn who are sad today.""That silence had a gaping hole in our community," Dashti told El-Sayed Wednesday.He asked whether he regretted that silence, whether he would renounce people who held vigils supporting Khamenei and whether he stood "unequivocally against the IRGC" and the Islamic Republic of Iran.El-Sayed responded by arguing that the United States has too often acted as "the world's policeman" while saying he supported movements for democracy and freedom abroad.AFTER 6 MONTHS OF WAR, US MUST PREPARE FOR A FUTURE AFTER IRAN’S GOVERNMENT FALLSDr.
Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee for U.S.Senate, speaks at the Michigan Democratic Nominating Convention in Lansing, Mich., on Aug.
29, 2026.(Anadolu via Getty Images)"One can disagree w...