By Amir Taghati
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGS) of Iran, including its Basij Resistsnace Force and 22 other dependent financial sectors, are all in the United States’ list of “terrosists”.
With this label on Basij, its assets have become limited and American citizens have also gotten banned from doing any trades with it (or any organisation that affiliates with it).
On 16th October, a statement was released from the US’ Department of Treasury: “Today, our office of Foreign Assets has taken action against a vast network that affiliate with Iran’s Basij Resistance Force; this network provides financial infrastructure to the Basij’s efforts to recruit, train, and indoctrinate child soldiers, who are coerced into combat under the IRGC’s direction”.
In response to this action, IRGCs immediately removed their shares from Etemad-e-Mobin (which is a public trust consortium for the Iran’s telecommunications), as announced by the regime itself: “Following the direction of Iran’s General Staff of Armed Forces, the IRGC has sold off its shares from Etemad-e-Mobin”.
This is a clear retreat from Iran’s regime, which some state media refer to as a “heroic compromise” (a term that was first created by Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei, to justify instances of retreat like this).
A platform named Rouydad24 comments regarding Rouhani’s government: “It seems that the IRGCs, who normally criticize or disregard the directions of the parliament and the government itself, have finally give into a heroic compromise following the recent sanctions; and that they have exited the Telecommunication sector (and sold off their billion-dollar shares) just to prevent any damages to their own financial resources”.
It’s worth reminding that the biggest business deal of the regime’s history was signed in 2011, when IRGCs bought 50% plus one share of “Tose’e Etemad-e-Mobin” stock, in less than half an hour.
Etemad-e-Mobin consists of several different sectors, all of which affiliate with either the IRGC or the Execution of Imam Khomeini’s Order (like “Gostareshe Electronic Mobin” for instance).
US Sanctions include the Revolutionary Guards Cooperative Foundation.
Mnuchin, the Treasury Secretary of the US emphasises on the evil role of Basij in violent crackdowns and serious human right abuses; and on the fact that this force trains child soldiers as young as 12 years old, and send them off to Syria in support of Bashar al-Assad’s regime: “The international community must understand that business dealings with Bonyad Taavon Basij have real world humanitarian consequences and any continued dealings with this Force will only fuel Iran’s tyranny further across all Middle East”.