Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has been officially labeled as a terrorist organization. Keir Starmer announced that the influential military group will be identified as a threat to national security, with members potentially facing life imprisonment. This designation will include the IRGC, the Islamic Movement of Companions of the Right (IMCR), and Russia’s GRU Volunteer Corps.
If approved by Parliament in the upcoming week, individuals engaging in acts of sabotage, such as arson, on behalf of these organizations could be subject to life imprisonment. The IMCR has taken responsibility for seven attacks on Jewish and Israeli communities in the UK, including the antisemitic arson on four Hatzola ambulances in north London earlier this year.
The Home Office stated that behind the IMCR, members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Qods Force likely orchestrated attacks across Europe. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood believes that the IRGC has been involved in foreign power threat activities, as indicated in a written ministerial statement.
According to security minister Angela Eagle, the Home Secretary must reasonably believe that a body is or has been engaged in foreign power threat activities to designate it as a threat. The Home Secretary, after reviewing evidence and consulting with various governmental and operational partners, has determined that the statutory test is met for the IRGC, IMCR, and GRU Volunteer Corps.
