Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Defies US and Israel

The deeper the IRGC’s entrenchment, the harder it will be for the US and Israel to dislodge.

By Patrick Sykes

Its commanders have been assassinated, its air defenses destroyed and its ranks penetrated by Israeli intelligence.

Yet somehow, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has emerged from the 12-day war with Israel with more power than before.

The IRGC was quick to market its partial victories in the June conflict, like causing billions of dollars of damage with missile attacks on Israeli cities or downing enemy drones.

That’s reinforced its reputation as the Iranian force most capable of resisting foreign attacks, a boon amid an uptick in nationalist sentiment among many who resent the Israeli operation even if they don’t support their own government.

Meanwhile, it’s embedding itself deeper into the top echelons of the state, with its members and veterans claiming key seats on the new National Defense Council that’s expected to help ensure command and control in any future skirmish.

Since Iran’s 1979 Islamic revolution, the IRGC has transformed from a “people’s army” established to counterbalance the conventional military to a sprawling organization with operations spanning from support for regional militias like Hamas and Hezbollah to hospitals, universities and even a role building the Tehran metro.

In the process, it’s made fortunes and drawn accusations of corruption, becoming an indispensable economic partner for a government in desperate need of investment in sanctioned industries like energy.

That engineering expertise is the legacy of another formative conflict, the 1980-1988 war with Iraq, after which Iran turned to the IRGC to rebuild roads, dams, railways and ports.

Now it’s likely to find those services in demand once again as Iran repairs the damage from Israeli and US airstrikes and seeks to fortify itself against a potential next round.

The IRGC’s network abroad — including proxies in Syria, Lebanon and Gaza — has been critically weakened, possibly making it more likely it will look to develop a nuclear deterrent.

The deeper its entrenchment, the harder it will be for the US and Israel to dislodge.