European Union Names Iran Revolutionary Guard Corps as Terrorist Organization

Illustration of the European Union. (Wikimedia Commons/Amio Cajander)

EU ministers on Thursday agreed to add the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to the bloc's list of terrorist organizations, putting the IRGC in a category similar to ISIS and Al Qaeda, marking a symbolic shift in Europe's approach to Iran's leadership.

"Repression cannot be left alone," wrote the Head of Foreign Policy of the European Union Kaja Kallas on the X social media platform, launching Al Arabiya from Reuters (30/1).

"Any regime that kills thousands of its own people is heading for its own destruction," he added.

Formed after the 1979 Iranian Islamic Revolution to protect the Shiite clerical government system, the IRGC has a huge influence in the country, controlling most of the economy and the armed forces. The IRGC is also tasked with managing Iran's ballistic missile and nuclear programs.

Although some EU member states have previously pushed for the IRGC to be included on the EU's terrorist list, other countries are more cautious, fearing it could hamper communication with the Iranian government and endanger European citizens at home. However, the brutal crackdown on the national protest movement earlier this month, which killed thousands of people, increased the momentum for the move.

"It is important for us to send a signal that the bloodshed we have witnessed, the brutality of the violence used against the demonstrators, cannot be tolerated," said Dutch Foreign Minister David van Weel.

Previously, France and Italy, who were reluctant to include the IRGC on the list, provided their support this week.

Despite concerns from some capitals that a decision to label the IRGC a terrorist organization could lead to a complete break in relations with Iran, Kallas told reporters on Thursday, "the assumption is that diplomatic channels will remain open, even after the IRGC's inclusion on the list."

The European Union also imposed sanctions on Thursday targeting 15 individuals and six entities "responsible for serious human rights violations in Iran," the European Council said in a statement.

"Iranian Minister of the Interior Eskandar Momeni, Attorney General Mohammad Movahedi Azad, a number of IRGC commanders and several senior law enforcement officials are among those sanctioned," the statement said.

Entities sanctioned on Thursday include Iran's Audio-Visual Media Regulatory Authority and several software companies that the EU says "are involved in censorship activities, trolling campaigns on social media, spreading online disinformation and misinformation, or contributing to widespread internet access disruption by developing surveillance and repression tools."

The European Union also sanctioned four individuals and six entities linked to Iran's drone and missile programs and "decided to expand the ban on exports, sales, transfers, or supplies from the EU to Iran to include further components and technologies used in the development and production of UAVs and missiles," the Council said.