Iran’s violent crackdown on protesters has reignited a long-running debate within the European Union over designating the Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) — widely seen as a key force behind the repression — as a terrorist organisation.
Placing the most powerful branch of Iran’s armed forces on the EU’s terrorist list would put the IRGC alongside groups such as Daesh, al-Qaeda, Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
A terrorist group designation would subject its members to travel bans, asset freezes and “a prohibition on making funds or economic resources available to those listed”, according to rules established by the European Council.