Latest news with #IslamicRevolutionaryGuardCorps
Euractiv
2 days ago
- Politics
- Euractiv
Belgian parliament calls on EU to list Iran's Revolutionary Guard as terrorist organisation
On Friday, the Belgian parliament almost unanimously backed a resolution calling for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to be added to the European Union's list of terrorist organisations. They also agreed on tougher migration rules. The paramilitary Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) report directly to Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and are tasked with safeguarding the regime – notably by suppressing dissent, such as the protests following the death of activist Mahsa Amini in September 2022. In early 2023, the European Parliament had already called on the Council of the European Union to list the IRGC as a terrorist organisation, but the resolution was not taken up. Belgian MPs want to see the implementation of stricter economic retaliatory measures against the Iranian regime, and called for an expanded list of sanctioned individuals to include members of the judiciary and senior officials overseeing the Iranian prison system. Today's resolution also referred to the case of Ahmadreza Djalali, a Swedish-Iranian citizen and visiting professor at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), who was arrested in Iran in 2016 and sentenced to death for 'corruption on earth' in 2017. The researcher is believed to have been transferred from Evin prison – which was bombed by the Israeli air force in June – to another detention facility. Besides calling for tougher rules on Iran, MPs also approved stricter rules on family reunifications, which are one of the main channels of asylum into Belgium, through a higher income threshold. Applicants must now earn at least 110% of the guaranteed minimum income (€2,323), plus an additional 10% for each family member. The law will shorten or remove grace periods for family members of refugees and extends the waiting period before relatives may be brought to Belgium. The minimum age for reunification has been raised to 21. (vib)
News18
2 days ago
- Politics
- News18
Nine Deadly Scenarios After US Attack On Iran's Nukes Which May Reshape Middle East
Last Updated: Is peace going to descend on the Middle East, or is the stormy sea of unending turmoil going to get redder and wider? In the Iran-Israel conflict, America does not any longer have the gun to Iran's head. With the airstrikes on Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan, it has pulled the trigger. What is going to be the impact of this in the region and the world? Is peace going to descend on the Middle East, or is the stormy sea of unending turmoil going to get redder and wider? Let us examine a dropdown of scenarios. First, the Ayatollah Ali Khameini regime may fall. Israel, and now the US, are not just targeting nuclear, ballistic missile, and military infrastructure. They are going for the symbols of the regime, have assassinated almost the entire military leadership, driven Khameini himself to a secret bunker, and bombed places like the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting. Second, the assassination of Khameini is not off the table. Israel has taken out a major chunk of his team, Trump said the US knew where he was hiding, and asked if the US would back a possible Israeli hit, US Vice President JD Vance said, it is 'up to the Israelis". Third, if the Ayatollah regime indeed falls, it does not guarantee peace. In fact, the vacuum could be filled by ideological hardliners in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) or the Iranian military. The prospect of an Iraq 2.0 — with ISIS-like actors running amuck — is looming in Iran now, some analysts claim. In spite of the western agencies' support for a prominent Opposition figure like US-based Reza Pahlavi — the son of the ousted Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi — he does not enjoy broad popularity inside Iran. A major reason is because Pahlavi wants the restoration of the warm ties which existed between his late father and Israel and to upturn the Islamic Republic's refusal to recognise Israel as a nation. Monarchists want such a reconciliation to be termed the 'Cyrus Accords', after the ancient Persian king who is credited with freeing the Jews from Babylon. The other challenger group is the People's Mujahedin (MEK), whose leader Maryam Rajavi told the European Parliament recently: 'The people of Iran want the overthrow of this regime." But most of the other Opposition dislikes the MEK and many Iranians distrust it for supporting Saddam Hussein during the Iran-Iraq war. Fourth, Iran could resume nuclear talks. This is despite Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi posting on X right after the US bombings: 'Last week, we were in negotiations with the US when Israel decided to blow up that diplomacy. This week, we held talks with the E3 (group of European ministers)/EU when the US decided to blow up that diplomacy." Iran has made it clear that the scenarios may not necessarily work out for the US-Israel-West alliance. Speaking in Istanbul, Iran's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi cautioned on Sunday that his country has 'a variety of options". Fifth and a distinctly possible outcome could be that of Iran retaliating. Mapping possibilities, James M. Acton, the chair and co-director of the Nuclear Policy Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told The New Yorker: 'The first one is immediate Iranian retaliation. Iran has many short-range ballistic missiles that can reach American bases and American assets in the region. Israel has not particularly targeted that infrastructure. It's been primarily focussed on Iran's longer-range missiles that can reach Israel. So I'm expecting to see some pretty dramatic attempted retaliation by Iran, and I think that puts enormous pressure on the President to respond again." According to the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), the US maintains a presence at 19 sites across the region, with eight of those considered by analysts to have a permanent US presence. As of June 13, the CFR estimated 40,000-odd US troops were in the Middle East. In 2020, an Iranian missile attack on a US garrison left more than 100 soldiers with crippling brain injuries. Sixth, the escalation could see IRGC activate its much-weakened but existing proxies across Iraq, Yemen, and Syria which have previously attacked US assets in the region. Israel has brought Hezbollah and Hamas on their knees, but Houthis are a less organised ragtag militia still capable of much harm. Seventh, Iran has moved to block the Strait of Hormuz. It could affect the whole of commercial shipping in the Gulf. The narrow strait connects the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, and flows out into the Arabian Sea. Major oil producers like Iran itself, Saudi Arabia, and UAE depend on the Strait of Hormuz to access the open seas. The strait is in the territorial waters of Iran and Oman. A blockage will dramatically affect the world's oil trade and prices. Interestingly, the Strait of Hormuz accounts for 50 per cent of China's total oil supplies and only 5 per cent of America's, according to some estimates. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio urged China to ask Iran to not shut down the Strait. 'I encourage the Chinese government in Beijing to call them about that, because they heavily depend on the Strait of Hormuz for their oil. If they do that, it will be another terrible mistake. It's an economic suicide for them if they do it," Rubio told Fox News. About 20 million barrels of oil flow through the strait each day, according to the US Energy Information Administration. Eighth, Iran may restart its nuclear programme. 'In the slightly longer term, I believe it's very likely that Iran's going to reconstitute its nuclear program. I think Iran is likely to withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and thus kick out inspectors," Acton has been quoted saying in The New Yorker. Iran had a batch of highly enriched uranium once believed to be stored in tunnels underneath Isfahan. While Iranians have claimed that they have removed it, none can say for sure. Ninth, with its nuclear sites bombed, Iran could make its nuke set-up portable and thus, more ominous. Components for building centrifuges which were being monitored when the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) under Barack Obama's 2015 nuclear deal. Trump pulled out in 2018. So, these parts are no longer being monitored. If the highly enriched uranium and the centrifuge components are small, it means they are portable, Acton avers. They can be moved around the country and be easily hidden. top videos View all And that could be the worst scenario born ironically out of the US-Israel attempt to stub off Iran's nuclear challenge. In all these, one outcome seems clear: the war in the Middle East is still not over. Abhijit Majumder is a senior journalist. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18's views. First Published: Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Arab Times
3 days ago
- Politics
- Arab Times
Massive Arms Haul Exposes Iran's Direct Role in Yemen Conflict
SANA, July 17: Tariq Saleh, a member of Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council and commander of the West Coast forces, announced the interception of a major weapons shipment following monitoring and surveillance conducted by the intelligence division of the National Resistance. According to Saleh, the seized cache included naval and air missile systems, an air defense system, advanced radars, drones, surveillance equipment, anti-tank missiles, B-10 artillery, tracking lenses, sniper rifles, ammunition, and various military hardware. Saleh reaffirmed his commitment to countering the activities of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in the region. Meanwhile, U.S. Central Command confirmed that Yemeni forces had confiscated over 750 tons of munitions and military equipment, which included hundreds of sophisticated anti-ship missiles, drones, warheads, radar systems, communications gear, and search devices. Commenting on the development, Yemeni Information Minister Muammar al-Eryani described the seizure as the largest Iranian weapons shipment intercepted to date, destined for the Houthi militia. He added that the presence of Persian-language operating manuals among the cargo underscores Iran's direct role in fueling regional instability. Al-Eryani stressed that the Houthi militia serves merely as a local proxy for the Revolutionary Guard's broader expansionist ambitions deep within Yemeni territory.
Gulf Insider
3 days ago
- Politics
- Gulf Insider
Iran Seizes Foreign Oil Tanker In Sea Of Oman
It remains important for energy traders to closely monitor the Strait of Hormuz and other key critical maritime chokepoints in the region (recall Red Sea events last week, given persistent geopolitical tensions involving Iran and Israel. Tehran retains a diverse toolkit—both asymmetric and conventional—for disrupting tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. These methods include naval mine deployment, anti-ship missile and drone launches, fast-attack craft swarms, and the seizure of vessels transiting the critical waterway responsible for 20% of the world's oil flows. Shortly after the U.S. launched 'Operation Midnight Hammer' in late June, deploying stealth bombers to strike Iran's nuclear facilities at Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan using Massive Ordnance Penetrator bombs, Iran's parliament voted to authorize the closure of the strait. However, Tehran never closed the strait, but there was at least one report we covered that said the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps mulled over littering the waterway with mines. Given that the mines were not deployed, a troubling new report from local media indicates that the IRGC has intercepted and seized a foreign tanker in the Gulf of Oman. The seizure was reportedly carried out under the pretext of 'fuel smuggling,' according to Iranian state media outlet Mehr News Agency (MNA) on X. 'The Chief Justice of Hormozgan Province has announced the seizure of a foreign oil tanker on charges of smuggling 2 million liters of fuel in the Sea of Oman,' MNA reported. The Chief Justice of Hormozgan Province has announced the seizure of a foreign oil tanker on charges of smuggling 2 million liters of fuel in the Sea of Oman.#BREAKING #BreakingNews — Mehr News Agency (@MehrnewsCom) July 16, 2025 Here are more details from pro-Iranian news channel Al Mayadeen: 'Following persistent surveillance of suspected fuel smuggling operations off Iran's Sea of Oman coast, security forces boarded and searched a foreign oil tanker,' Ghahremani said. Iranian authorities confirmed the seizure of the foreign tanker after detecting irregularities in its cargo documentation, with security forces arresting 17 crew members, including the ship's captain, during the operation. The vessel was suspected of transporting two million liters of smuggled fuel through the Sea of Oman. Fuel smuggling via 'dark fleet' tankers has been a consistent tactic used by Iran to circumvent Western sanctions, with much of the crude oil ultimately making its way to China. Details about the seized vessel's ownership and final destination remain limited. Also read: Drone Attacks On Northern Iraqi Oil Field On The Rise Amid Iran Tensions
Yemen Online
3 days ago
- Yemen Online
Iran seizes foreign tanker on fuel smuggling allegations
Iran's judiciary says authorities have seized a vessel smuggling 2 million liters of fuel in the Gulf of Oman. Fuel smuggling is rampant from Iran, where the domestic fuel price is kept low by heavy subsidies. Iranian authorities have seized a foreign tanker in the Gulf of Oman for smuggling 2 million liters (around 528,000 gallons) of fuel, the chief justice of southern Hormozgan province said on Wednesday. The vessel was intercepted "after legal documents related to its cargo were found to be incomplete," said Mojtaba Ghahremani, according to the judiciary's Mizan Online outlet. Fuel smuggling by land to neighbouring countries and by sea to Gulf Arab states is a persistent problem for authorities in Iran, where domestic fuel prices are among the lowest in the world owing to heavy subsidies. What has Iran said about the vessel's seizure? Ghahremani said that said that the tanker was detected as part of routine monitoring along the Gulf of Oman. "During the continuous process of monitoring and surveilling suspicious fuel smuggling movements in the Gulf of Oman, officers inspected a foreign tanker due to its lack of legal documents regarding its cargo and seized it on charges of carrying 2 million litres of smuggled fuel," Ghahremani said, according a report carried by the semi-official Mehr news agency. "Seventeen suspects, including the captain and crew of the foreign tanker, have been taken into custody," Ghahremani said, without giving the identity and nationality of those arrested, or the name of the tanker and the flag under which it is registered. He said a judicial case had been opened at the Jask county prosecutor's office. "The actions of fuel smugglers, who in coordination with foreigners, attempt to plunder national wealth will not remain hidden from the judiciary and punishment of perpetrators, if their crimes are proven, will be without leniency," Ghahremani said, according to the report. Other fuel smuggling incidents The Wednesday seizure is not the first time Iranian authorities have taken over tankers whose crew was suspected of smuggling fuel. In April, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps seized two Tanzanian-flagged tankers for alleged fuel smuggling, later transferring the vessels — the Sea Ranger and Salama — to the port of Bushehr for legal proceedings.
