Raisi and new malign activities of Quds Force

By: Erfan Fard {@EQFard}

The available data indicate that the Quds Force is a specialized division or an elite paramilitary arm of IRGC in Iran. Quds Force built up a widespread network in the war-torn country, such as Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Yemen and elsewhere. In most of those states, IRGC-QF, recruited local people and supporting Shia’ militias and working with Shia’ allied with The USA.

Almost certainly, the Quds Force and its network operate clandestinely overseas. On 25 October 2007, the US Department of the Treasury designated the Quds Force as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO). guided by this belief, it was the first time the U.S. designated the arm of another government as an FTO. This, however, is impossible to know what’s the real number, but the Canada and Israel designated the Quds Force , with around 18,000 to 20,000 members, as a Terrorist Organization on 17 December 2012 and as well on March 2015.

Furthermore, the critical issue over IRGC reviled on April 2019. the second flash-point is when the U.S. designed the IRGC, as a foreign terrorist organization by the US State Department but the CIA and the Pentagon were opposed to that decision. accordingly, some of the Arab states in the Persian Gulf, such as Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, On 23 October 2018, supported the idea.

However, Quds Force as the IRGC’s external affairs branch, has been doing the most bloody and dangerous activities behind the scenes over the past three decades and playing the ideological game in the region based on Shiism and Khomeinism, or the strategy of Khamenei. normally, The Quds Force with all of these armed militia and proxy relationships, seeks to advance the Islamic revolution and spread the ideology of Khoeinism which is mixture of alarmism, anarchism, antagonism, barbarism, bolshevism, demagogism, dogmatism, extremism, fanatism, gangesterism, stalinism, primitivism, reactionism, ruffinism, vandalism and vulgarism.

Accordingly, Quds Force as an instrument of the Islamic autocratic regime of terrorist loving mullahs in Iran, is operating underground and has engaged in spreading sectarian wars, ethnic conflicts and terrorist activities of allied terrorist organizations in most parts of Middle East and Africa, and also in the Latin American or western hemisphere. as well, the Quds Force instructs and supplies foreign Islamic revolutionary groups or guerrilla groups in the Middle East. generally, the Quds Force plays a direct role in the planning and military operations of these paramilitary organizations for terrorist operations outside Iran.

It is easy to ignore the details of background and history of the destructive activities, but focusing on its real structure will be more informative. so, between the paradigm of 9/11 in 2001 to Arab Spring in 2011, the malign activities of Quds Force had revealed in Sudan such as; the shaped triangle of Al-Qaida, Hezbollah and IRGC-QF ; the role of IRGC-QF in Afghanistan, Syria and Iraq and their coordination with Shiite militants ; the deployment of forces and officials to support the regime of Bashar al-Assad ; the suppress of the all protest movements and an anti-Assad rebels; the expansion of the Quds Force’s presence in loyal Shia Crescent.

So far, however, most of the western intelligence services are concern regarding the agents of the Quds Force in their soil or their related dark cells in their territories which run from Tehran.

Recently, FBI found the dirty plot of Quds force when its officials in 2011 failed in an assassination attempt on the Saudi ambassador to the United States. it leads to arresting of a high-ranking member of IRGC-QF officer abroad.

Moreover, after 2 January 2020, The CIA and FBI and other The US intelligence community were aware in any attack of IRGC-QF inside the US territory. because their reports showed that IRGC-QF launched a new campaign against American and Israeli targets in retaliation of Qasem Soleimani’s elimination.

by far, The former U.S. President George W. Bush, who had earlier identified Iran as a member of the “axis of evil”, blamed the Quds Force in 2007 because of providing roadside bombs to Shia militants and they slaughtered American forces barbarically by order of Qasem Soleimani.

Accurately, The Trump administration announced the deaths of 608 U.S. troops in Iraq between 2003 and 2011 to the IRGC, when Soleimani was involved in training and military advice and developed ties with Shia armed groups to strength military formation.
Shortly after the killing of Soleimani with orchestrating of CIA with cooperation of Mossad, Khamenei picked Esmail Qaani. Qaani is a somewhat enigmatic figure, as he served for years in Soleimani’s shadow. after the dubious death of Hejazi on 18 April 2021, it was the 2nd internal loss of IRGC-QF. noticeably, Hejazi was a notorious figure among IRGC because of terrorist operations under his command, the suppression of Kurds, his ties with terrorist Anti Israel groups and other proxy shia groups related to IRGC in Lebanon, Yemen, Syria, Iraq and elsewhere.

paradoxically, the Iranian Media in different statements, announced the death of Hejazi. consequently, a couple of hours after his death, Khamanei picked another figure , Fallahzadeh, as the new deputy commander of Iran’s elite Quds Force.

At the same time, name of Fallahzadeh was circulated in the internal Iranian media in. he is a shadow man of IRGC-QF who was close friend of Soleimani and he was eminent as his “Treasury of Mysteries” is a new deputy. Khamenei confirmed Fallahzadeh, who was the former Governor of Yazd (during the period of Ahmadinejad Presidency) and he was a commander of IRGC in Syria with secret name of Abu-Bagher! in that moment, IRGC supported PKK and some Shia Terrorist Groups to help Assad’s regime.

The history of IRGC shows that, it is almost absurd to describe one military man as a potential patriotic personage. this new deputy of IRGC-QF , Fallahzadeh, is famous as a dangerous , pitiless and sullen figure who tyrannized the people and opponents inside Iran and in Syria. however, Fallahzadeh has a radical shia ideology, and a superstitious mentality. he is very loyal to the house of Khamenei and similar to Qaani who extremely and obsequiously sings the praises of Khamenei’s ideology. however, most of Fallahzadeh’s superficial speeches are full of defenders of Shrines in Syria and axis of resistance, which means Islamic Terrorism of IRGC-QF.

In actuality, Fallahzadeh is very similar to Qaani. both of them are educated under the command of Soleimani. he is another new anti America and Anti Israel commander of IRGC-QF. this similar couple , Qaani and Fallahzadeh, is reminder of the relation between Imad Mughniyeh and Soleimani . Qaani and Fallahzadeh are focusing on the militant proxy model, and have ties with several local terrorist leaders as well as the Shia Militias. they have also cultivated groups with special modi operandi.

Now, Raisi came to power by endorsement of khamenei in a sham election, but the immediate goal of IRGC-QF is to weaken the US and Israel and fuel the crisis in the region . Qaani and his deputy Fallahzadeh and the entire terrorist organization of Quds Force can be expected to pursue that goal by keeping the US a primary terrorist target in parallel with Israel. Under leadership of Qaani and Fallahzadeh, the Quds Force will seek to intensify and coordinate terrorist operations among various groups both in the region and around the world. both of them like to endorse anti-Semitism , radicalism and terrorism in the region of Middle East..

In short, during the presidency of Raisi, the shaped cells of IRGC and Quds Force in Africa, South America, and has the capability to carry out terrorist attacks on the US border and Israel. It is also willing to use sabotage and terrorism to confront the US and Israel in the Persian Gulf.

Preposterously, Qaani and his Quds Force have no capability to have a direct confrontation with Israel and US. the Iranian people ridicule the bombastic speech of commanders in IRGC and Quds Force. it is a leaked fact among Iranian public opinion.
In summation, the Islamic Resistance means Islamic Terrorism and expansion of aggression. IRGC Quds force with Qaani and Fallahzadeh in the time of Raisi as a tyrant president, will continue their main goal and to support terrorism and violations in confrontation to Israel and the US. there is no change in the nature of Quds Force and elimination of Soleimani and Hejazi did not affect the system as it should be. the main goal is making the Middle East more and more turbulent to send a signal to Biden and Israel s well.

ABOUT THE AUTHORErfan Fard is a counter-terrorism analyst and Middle East Studies researcher based in Washington, DC. he is in Middle Eastern regional security affairs with a particular focus on Iran, Counter terrorism, IRGC, MOIS and Ethnic conflicts in MENA .he graduated in International Security Studies (London M. University, UK), and in International Relations (CSU-LA), and is fluent in Persian, Kurdish, Arabic and English. Follow him in this twitter account @EQFARD