Work to Counter Antiquities Trafficking and Art Crime

In 2018, Iyer joined the Antiquities Trafficking Unit within the New York County District Attorney's office, working with Col. Matthew Bogdanos on major cases related to art and crime, the illicit antiquities trade, and looted art.^[1][5] She was instrumental in the return of numerous looted, stolen, and trafficked cultural objects to their country of origin.^{[6][7][8][9][10][11][12]} She was involved in the repatriation of cultural property to 15 different countries, amounting to the return of over 1100 stolen cultural objects.^[4]

In 2021, she spent a summer working with Donna Yates at Maastricht University researching the application of statutes of limitations in cultural property cases as a Chayes International Public Service Fellow.^[4][13]

Prior to this, Iyer was a volunteer researcher in the Trafficking Culture research consortium and at the University of Pennsylvania's Penn Cultural Heritage Center..^[14]

Harvard Law Review Palestinian Genocide Article Controversy

Amidst the 2023 Israel–Hamas war, the online chairs of the Harvard Law Review commissioned an article by Harvard PhD Candidate and human rights lawyer Rabea Eghbariah, which "argue[d] that the atrocities in Gaza amount to genocide" and that "the distinctive nature of the domination Palestinians have faced should demand a new category of crime: 'Nakba'."^[15][16] After the article was edited, fact-checked, and initially approved, Iyer intervened to stop publication of the article, citing safety concerns.^[15][17] After this, an emergency meeting of 100 editors of the Harvard Law was called and then an anonymous vote was held, in which 63% of editors voted against publication."^[15][16] This move generated public controversy among editors and others.^[15][18][19]