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The Revolutionary Guards Will Protect the Islamic Republic

(Times of Israel) Nava Freiberg - Israel spent years tracking the key figures at the top of the Islamic Republic's command structure. Those killed on day one of Israel's attack included the chief of staff of Iran's armed forces and the commanders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), the military's central headquarters, the IRGC Aerospace Force, and the IRGC air defenses. These leaders fulfilled a role beyond their military responsibilities. They made up a veteran core of the Islamic Republic's leadership, a cadre of dedicated believers around Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei who forged their ties in the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq War. Iran's security doctrine will in all likelihood remain the domain of the IRGC. With 190,000 active troops and 600,000 volunteer paramilitary forces, the IRGC "has long been the Praetorian Guard to protect the supreme leader and the theocratic system," said Michael Rubin of the American Enterprise Institute. The IRGC controls Iran's missile program, nuclear ambitions, and network of proxy forces. The regime's survival isn't necessarily in danger, neither by the military loss nor public sentiment. "Zombie regimes can persist long beyond what wishful thinking in the West might suppose," Rubin noted.
2025-06-26 00:00:00
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