(Dan Tri) – In an unprecedented move, US President Donald Trump said on April 8 that he would designate the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization.
US President Donald Trump (Photo: Reuters)
The decision is unprecedented
According to Reuters, in a statement released on April 8, US President Donald Trump said that the US would officially consider the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRG) a `foreign terrorist organization`.
The decision `confirms the fact that Iran is not only a state sponsor of terrorism, but that the IRG is also directly involved in, financing, and encouraging terrorism,` the statement said.
The above decision marks the first time the US has designated a part of a foreign government as a terrorist organization.
Many officials in Mr. Trump’s administration opposed this decision because of concerns that it could entail risks for US military forces in the Middle East as well as causing trouble for US partners with relations with the United States.
The Pentagon declined to comment on how the US military will act to protect US troops from retaliation from the IRG as well as pro-Iranian armed forces in places like Iraq.
Anonymous US officials said that this designation does not mean that the US military will start treating IRG as al-Qaeda or other armed organizations that the US military can attack at any time.
`This does not mean (the US) is preparing for war with Iran or preparing to destroy a group of Iranians. Of course not,` an unnamed official said, adding that the US military had not received any information.
Critics say that Mr. Trump’s decision seems to be only symbolic because US law has stipulated a maximum prison sentence of 20 years for any US citizen associated with the IRG under the sanctions program and
Iran responded
Designating the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization is unprecedented in US history.
In response to the US decision, Iran’s Supreme Security Council yesterday also declared that it considered the US a `terrorist government`, calling the US Central Command a `terrorist organization`.
`In response to the so-called illegal and unacceptable actions of the US, Tehran officially considers the US a terrorist government and the US Central Command CENTCOM as well as its affiliated branches as terrorist organizations.
The council also accused the US and its allies of `regularly supporting extremist and terrorist groups in the West Asia region`.
On the same day, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi told the country’s national television station: `US bases and military forces in the region will be considered terrorist bases and forces.`
Established after the 1979 Islamic Revolution, the IRGC is Iran’s most powerful security organization.
The IRGC is in charge of Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
Minh Phuong According to Reuters, RT
