European Union foreign ministers were expected to agree Thursday to designate Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a "terrorist" group, the EU's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said.
The move, which would be largely symbolic, is in response to the recent brutal crackdown on anti-government protests in Iran this month, in which thousands of people have been killed.
"If you act as a terrorist, you should also be treated as terrorists," Kallas told reporters ahead of the foreign ministers' meeting in Brussels.
Kallas, the former Estonian prime minister who now serves as the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said the measure would put the IRGC "on the same footing" with terror groups such as Al-Qaeda, Hamas and the so-called "Islamic State."
What is the IRGC?
TL;DR: The IRGC is the ideological branch of Tehran's security forces.
The IRGC is the ideological branch of Tehran's security forces. It was created after the 1979 revolution to protect the clerical leadership and uphold the regime's Shia Islamist ideology and the principles of the revolution.
The IRGC's volunteer Basij force is widely seen as being crucial to suppressing the protests.
The anticipated move by the EU to blacklist the Revolutionary Guard comes after France and Italy said they would support the measure, after previously resisting it.
Who are Iran's Revolutionary Guards?
TL;DR: France is also keen to maintain diplomatic relations with Tehran.
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France, in particular, had been hesitant to designate the IRGC as a terror group over concerns about how that would affect Europeans detained in Iran. France is also keen to maintain diplomatic relations with Tehran.
"The estimate is that still the diplomatic channels will remain open even after the listing of the Revolutionary Guards," Kallas said.
Why is the EU blacklisting the IRGC?
TL;DR: France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told reporters in Brussels on Thursday morning that Paris was supporting the terror designation as "there can be no impunity for the crimes committed" by the clerical regime.
France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told reporters in Brussels on Thursday morning that Paris was supporting the terror designation as "there can be no impunity for the crimes committed" by the clerical regime.
Barrot added that the decision can also be viewed as an "appeal by France to the Iranian authorities to release the prisoners thrown by thousands into the regime's prisons, to end the executions that are perpetuating the most violent repression in Iran's modern history."
The French minister also urged Iranian authorities to end an internet blackout, which was first imposed in early January in a bid to quell the unrest.
Hundreds of Iranian officials and state entities have already faced EU sanctions over previous crackdowns on protests, as well as Iran's backing for Russia's war in Ukraine.
As the EU has already placed financial sanctions on the IRGC and many of its senior commanders, the terror designation is unlikely to have much impact on the Guards.
The bloc on Thursday approved new sanctions against around 30 Iranian individuals and entities with asset freezes and travel bans.
Barrot said the subjects of the new sanctions include "members of the government, prosecutors, police unit leaders, members of the Revolutionary Guard Corps, those responsible for blocking the internet."
EU mulls listing Iran's Revolutionary Guard as terror group
TL;DR: On Thursday, the foreign ministers of the EU's 27 member states will also discuss the Russian aggression against Ukraine, as well as the situation in the Middle East.
On Thursday, the foreign ministers of the EU's 27 member states will also discuss the Russian aggression against Ukraine, as well as the situation in the Middle East.
What is happening in Iran?
TL;DR: Thousands of people have been killed by Iranian security forces since protests against the dire economic situation began in late December.
Thousands of people have been killed by Iranian security forces since protests against the dire economic situation began in late December.
The protests quickly grew into anti-government demonstrations and calls for regime change.
While Iran admits that over 3,000 people have died during the unrest, authorities say the majority were either security personnel or bystanders killed by "rioters" and "terrorists."
Rights groups dispute the clerical regime's version of events. The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) said at least 6,373 people — of whom 5,993 were protesters — have been killed, warning that many more are feared to have died in the unrest.
Some estimates by rights groups place the death toll in the tens of thousands.
The communications blackout has hindered independent verification of the full extent of the crackdown.
Iran military analyst: Strike must target security apparatus
Curated by Sofia Andersson
