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Members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) prepare for the funeral of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at the Grand Mosalla in Tehran, Iran, on July 3 (local time). / Photo courtesy of AFP, Yonhap News

The United Kingdom announced on July 13 (local time) that it will designate Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a national security threat and launch a sweeping crackdown on the group.

According to the Washington Post, the British government stated that it is pursuing the designation after confirming the involvement of the IRGC and its proxy organizations in violent conspiracies within the UK targeting journalists and activists, including bomb threats and assassination attempts.

The UK also plans to designate the "Islamic Movement of Companions of Justice (IMCR)"—which it claims has carried out multiple attacks, including arson on an ambulance operated by a Jewish community group and a plot targeting the Israeli Embassy—alongside a "volunteer corps" from Russia's military intelligence agency (GRU), as national security threats.

"This designation is aimed at better protecting the UK from foreign interference, espionage, and national threats posed by foreign proxies," the British Home Office said in a statement. "Anyone carrying out sabotage, such as arson, on behalf of these groups could face up to life in prison."

The Home Office added, "The IMCR has claimed responsibility for seven attacks connected to Jewish and Israeli communities as well as Persian-language media in the UK. Behind the IMCR were almost certainly IRGC Quds Force operatives directing attacks across Europe."

British authorities have asserted that the IMCR attacked Jewish communities and Iranian dissidents in the UK and Europe following the outbreak of the war in Iran this year.

"We will never allow the UK to become a playground for foreign nations seeking to spread fear, division, and violence," British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said. "This measure will make it easier to prosecute and detain those who carry out these despicable acts within our borders."

The United States designated the IRGC as a foreign terrorist organization in 2019. While the UK had previously hesitated to label a state security organ as a terrorist group, it decided to implement the sanctions as the IRGC exerts vast influence not only over Iran’s economy and military but also over regional militant groups like Hezbollah and Hamas, effectively becoming indistinguishable from the state regime itself.

                                                                                                            Park Jin-sook