Expelled from Iran
When he was 27, Mehran protested against the monarchy in Iran which was eventually toppled. Nasseri said that he was expelled from Iran in 1977 for protests against the Shah. Mohammed Reza Pahlavi was the last Shah of Iran, overthrown in 1979.
Source: Toronto Star
He was expelled from the country and his citizenship was revoked. He was eventually rewarded refugee status by the United High Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Belgium.