Iran’s Ayatollah calls IRGC ‘largest counter-terrorism organization in the world'

Iran’s Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) “the largest counter-terrorist organization in the world” a meeting with a group of senior IRGC officers and Basij paramilitary leaders on Thursday, according to a tweet by the Ayatollah’s account and a report by London-based Iran International.

IRGC is the largest counter-terrorism organization in the entire world.- Ayatollah Khamenei, Aug 17, 2023 pic.twitter.com/GDa4EDH6wc

— Khamenei.ir (@khamenei_ir) August 18, 2023

The Thursday meeting also saw Khamenei call the US the main enemy of the Iranian regime. “We must raise our voice against America,” he said. “Whenever you want to shout, shout against America,” Khamenei declared, leading many in attendance to begin chanting “Death to America.”

The IRGC – who are known for their support of Hezbollah, among other terrorist groups – is designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. Israel and the US have repeatedly called for their allies to join in their recognition of the IRGC as a terrorist entity, though many countries remain hesitant to do so.

IRGC-sponsored terror worldwide

The IRGC has moved militias and weapons into Syria and Iraq, exported precision-guided munitions and drones to Hezbollah in Lebanon, and backed terrorist groups inside Palestinian territories, such as Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ).

The IRGC’s Quds Force commander Ismail Qaani told Iranian pro-regime media that “15 to 30 attacks are carried out daily in the West Bank by the resistance forces against the Zionist regime,” Tasnim news reported.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard is also known for conducting terrorist activities on other overseas territories. In August 2022, Iran exported Shahed-136 "suicide drones," which detonate on impact in a Kamikaze-esque fashion, to Russia to aid its efforts against Ukraine.

The Islamic Guard’s reach has gone beyond the Middle East and as far as Europe. A statement provided to The Jerusalem Post by the British embassy in January 2023 stated that the IRGC posed a persistent threat to Europe and that there have been at least ten “threats by Iran to kidnap or assassinate British or UK-based people this year.” 

“The UK has sanctioned over 300 Iranian individuals and entities for their role in weapons proliferation, human rights abuses and terrorism, including the IRGC in its entirety," the UK said in the statement.

Iran’s IRGC has even sparked unrest at home, as IRGC guards were the ones who arrested Mahsa Amini, whose death in September 2022 triggered nationwide protests. 

Tovah Lazaroff, Seth J. Frantzman, and Aaron Reich contributed to this report.