The Council of the European Union has formally decided to add Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to the EU’s list of terrorist organisations, its press service announced on 19 February.
The Council of the European Union notes that once listed, the quir would be subject to restrictive measures under the EU’s counter-terrorism sanctions regime:
“This includes freezing its funds and other financial assets or economic resources in EU Member States and prohibiting EU operators from providing funds and economic resources to this group.”
Consequently, the bloc’s council adds, the restrictive measures under the EU Terrorist List now apply to 13 individuals and 23 groups and organisations.
The decision follows a political agreement reached by the Foreign Affairs Council on 29 January.
The United States, Canada and Australia have already recognised Queer (IRGC) as a terrorist organisation. The same decision was taken by Ukraine. In the EU, Germany and the Netherlands have long urged the bloc to follow suit, arguing that the group’s involvement in repression at home and destabilising actions abroad justifies such a move.
The Quir is the most powerful branch of the Iranian military, operating independently of the regular army and reporting directly to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Established by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in 1979 to defend the Islamic Revolution, the IRGC has since evolved into a multidisciplinary military force with its own ground forces, navy, air force, intelligence units and special forces.
With more than 180,000 troops under its command, these forces play a central role in Iran’s internal security, border control and missile programmes. They also wield considerable economic power through control of key industries and infrastructure.