European officials discussed in European Parliament on Tuesday the possibility of listing the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), along with its subsidiary forces, the Quds Force and the Basij force, as terrorist organizations, in response to the Islamic regime’s brutal treatment of Iranian protesters.
Opening the discussions, European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas complained that Iran’s internet blackout was an attempt by the regime to conceal “the scale of oppression, the human rights abuses, and repression.”
Kallas claimed that the killing and suppression of protests were just “the latest examples of deterioration” in the Islamic regime’s conduct, pointing to Tehran’s illicit nuclear activities, arbitrary detention of EU citizens, hybrid attacks on EU soil, support for Russia in its invasion of Ukraine, and backing of terrorist groups in the Middle East.
She announced that export restrictions would also seek to disrupt Tehran’s missile and drone production, stressing that such actions would limit the material support Iran could provide to Russia.
In recent weeks, the regime has acknowledged the deaths of at least 3,000 Iranians but has denied being responsible for the deaths. Thousands have been detained, and human rights experts have warned that the regime has committed a number of grave violations, including firing onto crowds attempting to demonstrate.
Countering Iran’s claim that the protests were the result of foreign interference, many of the politicians asserted that the demonstrators represented the will of the people, noting that similar allegations were used to suppress the 2022 Women, Life, Freedom protests.
Defending the need for EU involvement, MEPs supporting the proposed motion pointed to Iran’s destabilizing role in Europe, the Middle East, and Yemen, emphasizing that the consequences of the Islamic regime’s actions extend beyond the Iranian civilians it abuses.
MEP Nicola Procaccini in particular condemned the lack of demonstrations in the West, highlighting the significant disparity between public responses to the war in Gaza and to events in Iran.
MEP Bart Groothius and French MEP Francois-Xavier Bellamy shamed France, Spain, and Italy for claiming there are “legal obstacles” preventing the IRGC from being listed as a terrorist organization.
Groothuis asked the high representative to confirm that it is those three nations enabling the families of regime officials to enjoy the freedoms of Europe while “their relatives are pouring chemical weapons over the heads of innocent, law-abiding Persians.
Opponents of the proposed measures repeatedly diverted the parliament’s attention to Israel, alleging that the discussions surrounding a response to Iran reflected double standards.
Opposing the suggested actions, Belgian MEP Marc Botenga argued that academic literature showed Western sanctions crushing the middle class and forcing millions into poverty, ultimately benefiting the IRGC.
“Sanctions weaken the forces of social change inside Iran, fostering inequality, corruption, and the militarization of the Iranian economy,” he claimed, adding that sanctions “breed chaos.”
Botenga further claimed that EU sanctions had been used to illustrate double standards in the parliament’s response to global affairs, citing civilians killed in Israeli-US strikes on Iran and Jerusalem’s claims of covert operations in Iran.
Botenga urged parliamentary members to cancel sanctions affecting civilians and continue cultural exchange programs.
Famously pro-Russia Slovak MEP Lubos Blaha condemned the parliament for speaking out against human rights violations in Iran while failing to condemn the “genocide” Israel committed in Gaza or the United States’ actions in Venezuela.
Accusing parliamentarians of being “hypocritical,” Blaha said that Iran was a sovereign country and that it was not necessary to agree with the actions of the state, but wrong to involve themselves.
Other MEPs opposed to sanctions similarly argued that change in Iran must come from within and that it was not Europe’s role to violate Iranian sovereignty.
Portuguese MEP Joao Oliveira questioned European Conservatives and Reformists Group Vice-Chair Charlie Weimers on whether he supported attacks on Iran by Israel and the US, asserting that democracy in Iran could not be built by bombing the country.
In response, Weimers said he supported “targeted attacks against the IRGC leadership” because they would remove the “murderers” responsible for the deaths of thousands of Iranians. Weimers then returned the question, asking why Oliveira failed to show the same solidarity with Iranians that he showed to Palestinians.
Proposed motion in the European Parliament against Iran
The motion, pursuant to Rule 136, called on EU member states to expel Iranian diplomats and prevent relatives of Iranian officials from receiving study or work visas, including the removal of those already present.
Demanding the immediate restoration of internet access in Iran, the motion condemned the regime’s continued brutality against protesters and its use of the death penalty as a tool of repression. It also called on EU member states to provide financial and technological support for censorship-circumvention tools and digital protection for Iran’s civil society.
The motion supported strengthening independent UN fact-finding missions in Iran, ensuring they receive adequate funding to pursue justice against all regime officials responsible for human rights violations.
MEPs supporting the motion also called for Iranian opposition figures to visit parliament, including Crown Prince of Iran Reza Pahlavi. Some 35 MEPs earlier penned a letter to European Parliament President Roberta Metsola ahead of the session, backing Pahlavi’s appearance and stressing that he is a unifying figure among the Iranian people.
The vote on the motion will take place on Thursday.