Iran's Revolutionary Guards Decoded: The Force Steering Repression

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or IRGC, is the ideological arm of Tehran's military, answering to supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and stands accused by Western countries of orchestrating and perpetrating the crackdown on protesters.

Who are they?

The Guards, known as "Pasdaran" in Persian, were founded in 1979 by then supreme leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini "to propagate the ideas of the Islamic revolution", said Clement Therme, a researcher at the International Institute of Iranian Studies.

"It's an army of 150,000 to 180,000 people in service of an ideology."

A Western diplomat who requested anonymity to speak said its membership was thought to be around 200,000.

"It's an armed force that functions like an elite military with terrestrial, maritime and aerospace capabilities, while it is better trained, better equipped and better paid than the regular military", the diplomat said.

The IRGC also serves as Tehran's link to its regional allies, such as Hezbollah in Lebanon and pro-Iran militias in Iraq.

Its leadership is entirely appointed by the supreme leader.

Last June, Khamenei named Mohammad Pakpour as its head to replace Hossein Salami, killed on the first day of the recent war with Israel.

Pakpour is a veteran of the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war.

What resources do they have?

"It's an empire within an empire," said David Khalfa, a researcher at the France-based Jean-Jaures Foundation.

The Guards control or own companies across the Iranian economy, including major strategic sectors.

They exercise near-monopolistic control of infrastructure, energy, technology, telecoms and finance, Khalfa said.

Their annual military budget is estimated at around $6 billion to $9 billion, or 40 percent of Iran's official military budget, according to data collated by Khalfa.

"They effectively control the Iranian economy," he added.

How do they operate?

The Guards have put in place a vast intelligence network that is "the most extensive, the most effective in the Iranian regime," said Khalfa.

In the past, they have proved capable of dismantling protest networks rapidly, identifying leaders within minutes.

To enforce their will, the Guards rely on the Basij paramilitary, which is recruited mainly from young Iranians and acts as an ideological organisation embedded in all institutions and levels of society.

There are thought to be around 600,000 to 900,000 Basij members, Khalfa said, pointing to cross-referenced data from several US think tanks.

What role do they have in repressing protests?

"They play a central role in the repression because today, more than ever, they are a pillar of the regime, a pillar of its continuity and its survival, said Khalfa.

"They have a set political and operational line regarding the protests which is zero tolerance", he added.

At least 734 people have been killed during the protests, according to the Norway-based NGO Iran Human Rights, though it has warned that the true toll is likely much higher.

Experts believe that at the start of the demonstrations last month, the Guards were likely staying in the background and relying on local security forces and the Basij to handle the demonstrators.

However, "since the beginning, they have been steering the repressive apparatus," said Khalfa.

With the protests defying that repression, the Guards sent their ground forces and their special units in, he added.

Therme, the researcher, said the Guards were operating in civilian clothing as part of efforts to deny their involvement in human rights violations.

Who considers them a terrorist organisation?

In 2019, the United States designated the Guards a terrorist organisation.

Australia designated it a state sponsor of terrorism in November, having blamed it for two 2024 arson attacks on its Jewish community.

In Europe there have been calls from officials and members of the European Parliament for the IRGC to be designated a terrorist group to increase pressure on Tehran.

A diplomatic source said Germany, in particular, would back listing the guards' Quds Force, its elite overseas unit, which it has linked to a 2021 attack against a German synagogue.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed)