US Ambassador Ken Blackwell wrote an op-ed for Townhall urging the United States government to increase its pressure on the Iranian regime in the wake of its inclusion of its Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) on its terror blacklist.

After IRGC Blacklisting, It’s Time to Engage the Iranian Resistance https://t.co/kDzpwowink

— J. Kenneth Blackwell (@kenblackwell) April 16, 2019

Blackwell warned that “Iran’s malign influence is growing,” and urged Western leaders to confront the regime’s “imperialism.”

The Emergence of IRGC-Funded Militia Groups

President Donald Trump’s designation of the IRGC as a foreign terrorist organization (FTO) was a welcome move that Blackwell argued had “grown more imperative” in recent years. The IRGC is a vital organ of repression for the regime in Iran. It also uses it to export its state-sponsored terrorism across the globe.

However, Blackwell asserts, it was the “proliferation of IRGC-funded and facilitated extremist groups in Syria, Iraq and elsewhere,” that meant the US administration had no choice but to take firm action against the group.

“Serious critics of the Iranian regime were quick to embrace the FTO designation,” Blackwell writes. Among them was Maryam Rajavi, the president-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), and NCRI’s main component, the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK). The MEK is the largest and most popular opposition group and has been behind many of the protests that have taken place in Iran over the last 18 months.

In a statement, Mrs. Rajavi called the US government’s designation “long overdue.” For the MEK, Blackwell writes, “western pressure on the IRGC is not only a means of promoting international peace and stability but also a sign of support for the Iranian people in their conflict with the theocratic dictatorship.”

Maryam Rajavi reiterated the necessity of listing the IRGC as a terrorist organization. She recalled that the Iranian Resistance had declared many times before that the terrorist listing of the IRGC in its entirety is imperative for peace, and security in the Middle East.

— Maryam Rajavi (@Maryam_Rajavi) April 9, 2019

For the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, the designation was vital for cutting off financial assistance and resources to the IRGC from American entities. He made it clear that until the Iranian regime ends its “malign activities” and ends its use of terrorism as a tool of statecraft, it would continue to face economic pressure and restrictions.

Every Cent That Goes to the IRGC Goes Towards Death and Repression

The IRGC has been instrumental to the regime’s Middle East objectives. Its militia and proxies are active in Syria, Lebanon, Yemen, Iraq, and Afghanistan. Every cent that flows into IRGC coffers in a cent available to use in devising terror plots, assembling militia and murdering opposition members.

But for Blackwell, the designation does not go far enough. The IRGC, for example, was not behind the regime’s international terror plots on European soil. In June 2018, for example, the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence (MOIS) orchestrated a plot to detonate a car bomb at the MEK’s annual Grand Gathering event. The plot was foiled by Belgian authorities, averting countless deaths and immeasurable tragedy.

On behalf of the Iranian Resistance which has called for an arms and oil embargo on Iran’s religious dictatorship since 1981, Mrs. Rajavi reiterated the need to take the following measures: #Iran #BlackListIRGC pic.twitter.com/g1x3X13RHx

— Maryam Rajavi (@Maryam_Rajavi) April 8, 2019

“President Trump and Secretary Pompeo have frequently promised that pressure on the Islamic Republic will continue to intensify until American goals are realized,” Blackwell wrote. He then urged President Trump and Secretary Pompeo to “recognize that the logical next step in exerting such pressure is to extend the newfound terrorist designation from the IRGC to its accomplice, MOIS.”

Staff writer

On April 8, 2019, the United States added the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) to its list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs). The designation marks another significant step by the United in ending the longstanding policy of appeasement toward the mullahs.

Had the disastrous, decades-long policy of appeasement not provided so much freedom of action to the mullahs & IRGC, the Iranian regime could not have caused so much bloodshed in Iraq, Syria. Lebanon, Yemen & Afghanistan. #Iran #BlackListIRGC

— Maryam Rajavi (@Maryam_Rajavi) April 8, 2019

Following the announcement on Monday, Mrs. Maryam Rajavi, President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), issued a statement on the IRGC’s terrorist designation, calling it an imperative for Middle Eastern security, peace, and stability, and an urgent and necessary step to end war and terrorism throughout the region and the world.

In the interest of the Iranian people, regional peace and security, the EU must designate the IRGC as a terrorist entity. #Iran #BlackListIRGC

— Maryam Rajavi (@Maryam_Rajavi) April 8, 2019

In her statement, Mrs. Rajavi pointed out that the NCRI and the Iranian Resistance has called for years to have the suppressive Revolutionary Guards designated as an FTO. The MEK has advocated for the inclusion of the IRGC on the FTO list for many years.

The terrorist designation of the repressive Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has been the enduring and the righteous demand of the Iranian people and Resistance and an imperative for regional and global peace and security. #Iran #BlackListIRGC

— Maryam Rajavi (@Maryam_Rajavi) April 8, 2019

“This action, which was long overdue, should now be completed by designating the Iranian regime’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS),” she added.

FTO designation of IRGC is the long-standing and rightful demand of the Iranian Resistance, an imperative for regional, peace and stability, urgent & necessary step to end war & terrorism in the region & the world. #Iran #BlackListIRGC #BlackListMOIS

— Maryam Rajavi (@Maryam_Rajavi) April 8, 2019

IRGC’s Terrorist Role

The IRGC plays a primary role in sustaining the

velayat-e faqih regime (absolute clerical rule) through its repressive actions within Iran. The Revolutionary Guards are responsible for suppressing all forms of protest and political dissent. The IRGC also controls the regime’s aggression outside of Iran, including wars, terrorist actions, and its nuclear and missile projects. In addition, the IRGC controls at least 50 percent of Iran’s economy.

Had the disastrous, decades-long policy of appeasement not provided so much freedom of action to the mullahs & IRGC, the Iranian regime could not have caused so much bloodshed in Iraq, Syria. Lebanon, Yemen & Afghanistan. #Iran #BlackListIRGC

— Maryam Rajavi (@Maryam_Rajavi) April 8, 2019

Mrs. Rajavi stressed that the IRGC has been responsible for bloodshed in wars in Iraq, Syria. Lebanon, Yemen, and Afghanistan due to the policy of appeasement toward the mullahs. Many of these deaths could have been prevented if the Revolutionary Guards had been designated as a terrorist organization earlier.

Mrs. Rajavi urged the European Union to follow the United States’ lead and designate the IRGC as a terrorist entity. She stressed that the IRGC poses a threat to both the Iranian people and peace and security in the region. She also noted that the ultimate solution to dealing with the Iranian regime is to allow the Iranian people and its Resistance movement to overthrow its oppressive caliphate.

In the interest of the Iranian people, regional peace and security, the EU must designate the IRGC as a terrorist entity. #Iran #BlackListIRGC

— Maryam Rajavi (@Maryam_Rajavi) April 8, 2019

A Call on the International Community

Mrs. Rajavi ended her statement by reiterating the Iranian Resistance’s call on the international community to take the following measures:

1. Recognize the right of the Iranian people and the Iranian Resistance to overthrow the ruling clerical regime and establish a free Iran.
2. Place the Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) and other organizations who export terrorism and fundamentalism on the U.S. State Department’s FTO list and the E.U.’s Terror Watch list.
3. Expel all agents of the MOIS and the terrorist Quds Force from the United States and Europe.
4. Refer the dossier on the Iranian regime’s human rights violations and the massacre of political prisoners to the United Nations Security Council and the International Court of Justice.
5. Expel the Iranian regime from the U.N. and recognize the Iranian Resistance as the true representative of the Iranian people.
6. Evict the Iranian regime and its forces from Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Lebanon, and Afghanistan.Staff writer