Iran MPs adopt countermeasure against US blacklisting of IRGC

The Iranian Parliament (Majlis) has overwhelmingly approved the general outlines of a motion devised by the legislature to counter the United States’ blacklisting of the Islamic Republic’s elite defense forces.

The double-urgency motion was forwarded to Majlis last week after the US designated Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) as “a foreign terrorist organization.” On Tuesday, the Parliament lent its overall approval to the motion during its open session, with 204 votes in favor, two against, and no abstentions.

It features 13 articles, the most important of which are as follows:

Article 1 denounces the US measure as a breach of international law, calls it counterproductive to regional and international peace and stability, and reciprocally designates the US Central Command (CENTCOM) -- including all its affiliated bases, units, and forces -- as “a terrorist organization.” It also calls any assistance favoring CENTCOM “aiding and abetting acts of terrorism.”

PressTV-Iran parliament committee passes US counterplan

An Iranian parliament's committee passes a motion to take a reciprocal measure against the US designation of the IRGC as a terrorist organization.

Article 2 obliges the government to act “decisively” against any US measure potentially compromising the Islamic Republic’s interests, while Article 3 urges the government and Armed Forces to preemptively prevent US forces from using available resources against those interests.

Article 4 obligates Iran’s intelligence apparatuses to identify CENTCOM’s commanders and those in charge of its affiliates to enable their prosecution, and tasked the Judiciary to mandate such prosecution.

The government was, in line with Article 5, tasked with supporting all the natural and legal persons, who cooperate with the IRGC thus lying in the way of harm by the United States.

Article 6 mandates legal, political, and diplomatic endeavor aimed at shuttering the US’s regional bases and blocking the US forces’ access to regional resources.

The countries and people cooperating with the US designation were subjected under Article 7 to retaliatory Iranian efforts. Any Iranian organizations potentially withholding support for the IRGC citing US sanctions were, meanwhile, found subject to punitive measures as per Article 8.

Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani said the motion would be discussed in detail at the legislature next week.

He praised the vote as “decisive and exceptional,” saying it reflected the lawmakers’ unity when it came to issues of national importance.

“Majlis showed that it acts in unison when it comes to supporting national interests and security. This is an invaluable thing that the Americans should understand well,” he noted.

Defense Minister Brigadier General Amir Hatami addressed the open session, praising the motion and voicing the government’s support for it.

“This [US] conspiracy too will face defeat,” he said, noting that the blacklisting showed that Washington’s sanction ploy against the Islamic Republic has been rendered ineffective.

“Their successive and long-term sanctions counterproductively resulted in the Iranian nation’s self-sufficiency and enhancement of its defensive and deterrent power,” Hatami asserted.

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