Friday, January 30, 2026
The European Parliament, in its session on Thursday, January 22, 2026, unanimously condemned the bloody repression and massacre of thousands of protesters in Iran and voted to include the IRGC on the list of terrorist organizations of the European Union. The resolution demands the immediate and unconditional release of all political prisoners, protesters, human rights defenders and journalists, and calls on the Council of the European Union to fully subject the IRGC, Basij and Quds Force to sanctions, asset freezes and visa bans without delay.
Since its inception, the IRGC has been formed not as a defense institution but as the backbone of the Islamic Republic’s survival. For more than forty-six years, it has played a pivotal role in suppressing society, eliminating opponents, containing social movements, and advancing the regime’s repressive policies. Relying on independent intelligence and security structures, an extensive network of prisons, Basij paramilitary forces, and affiliated media, this institution effectively controls important parts of the country’s political and social life and has become a permanent tool for intimidating and suppressing the people.
The IRGC’s influence is not limited to the security aspect, but has also heavily affected the country’s economy. Today, the IRGC has taken over key sectors of production, distribution, banking, oil and gas projects, petrochemicals, and large industries, and has made huge profits from selling oil and circumventing sanctions. As a result, it has become a parallel and unaccountable state that, alongside the official government, takes over the country’s public resources and acts to the detriment of the people’s interests.
In the field of foreign and regional policy, the IRGC, especially through the Quds Force, also plays a decisive role. Organizing and supporting paramilitary forces in most countries in the region and financing these interventions from the resources of the Iranian people have not only spread suffering and insecurity in the region, but have also made Iran increasingly isolated internationally and exposed to war. These policies are in clear conflict with peace, stability, and collective security in the region.
The Left Party of Iran, which had previously taken a stand in relation to the revolutionary movement, Women, Life, Freedom, regarding the designation of the IRGC as a terrorist organization, now believes that increasing political and economic pressure on the IRGC, targeted sanctions on this institution and its inclusion on the list of terrorist organizations, while simultaneously condemning the repression of the Islamic Republic and "the immediate and unconditional release of all political prisoners, protesters, human rights defenders and journalists," is a useful and effective measure and evaluates it as a way to weaken the Islamic Republic's repression machine. While supporting this resolution, we declare that we are against any war and military intervention. The main cost of war will be borne, first and foremost, by the Iranian people. We agree with the emphasis of the European Union's foreign policy chief, who clarified: These decisions do not mean closing diplomatic channels and that channels of dialogue and political engagement can and must remain open.
We believe that liberation from the Islamic Republic, the establishment of freedom, democracy and equality, is only possible through the hands of the Iranian people and through their conscious, widespread and comprehensive struggles. Sanctioning the institutions of repression and holding the perpetrators of crimes accountable is part of the international support for this just and popular path.
Political-Executive Board of the Left Party of Iran
Friday, January 30, 2026
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