A senior commander of the Revolutionary Guards has proudly displayed the Islamic Republic’s links with terrorist organizations and military regiments that support the regime of Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad.

On Thursday, January 9, General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, commander of the Revolutionary Guards’ Aerospace Force, addressed the press against a backdrop of the flags of the Lebanese Hezbollah, Yemen’s Houthis, Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces and the Palestinian Hamas, along with Iran’s official flag and the colors of the Revolutionary Guards. Also present were the flags of the Revolutionary Guards-led Fatemiyoun and Zeinabyoun brigades, which are comprised, respectively, of Afghan refugees and Shia Pakistanis living in Iran, both of which fight in Syria in support of al-Assad.

Hajizadeh spoke to the press about the Iranian missile attack on American bases in Iraq in retaliation for the US assassination of General Ghasem Soleimani, commander of the expeditionary Quds Force. Tasnim News Agency, which is linked with the Revolutionary Guards, reported that the general had appeared alongside the “flags of other resistance groups.”

It is very unusual for a country’s official to not only appear in public in front of the flags of other countries and nationalities, but to also insist on drawing attention to them. It is also natural to assume that the countries and organizations represented by these flags would find it unacceptable that a foreign country’s official would hold a press conference displaying their flags and, at least implicitly, appear to be speaking for them.

This is unusual for many reasons. Most importantly, the general appearing alongside the flags sends the message that the Revolutionary Guards accepts responsibility for actions taken by these groups and countries, not only for itself but, as a representative of the Islamic Republic, for the whole regime. At the same time, when these groups or countries do not object to such a presentation, this means they agree with statements made by the Guards’ general, and they concede that they are partners to any action the Revolutionary Guards Corps take and, ultimately, whatever the Islamic Republic of Iran does.

Denials Not an Option

As such, this makes it possible to attribute the activities of the Lebanese Hezbollah, Yemen’s Houthis, Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces and the Palestinian Hamas to the Islamic Republic. When one of these groups takes action and the Islamic Republic tries to deny responsibility for it, the international community will find such a denial unacceptable. For instance, when the Houthis target locations in Saudi Arabia or Hamas attacks targets in Israel, the responsibility will be placed directly on the shoulders of the Islamic Republic — and it will be Iranian citizens who will ultimately pay the cost.

It is quite obvious that all actions taken by these groups might not always correspond to the wishes and the interests of the Islamic Republic. For quite some time Hamas was in conflict with the Islamic Republic because Hamas opposed the government of the Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and, as a result, the Iranian regime withdrew its financial and political support for Hamas. Now, in a similar situation, if Hamas acted in a way that would have been considered criminal, Iran would suffer the consequences.

For some time now senior officials of the Islamic Republic have been clear about their relations with the Lebanese Hezbollah and say publicly that they support the group in terms of financing, training and logistics. As early as 2016, Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah confirmed this. "We are open about the fact that Hezbollah's budget, its income, its expenses, everything it eats and drinks, its weapons and rockets, come from the Islamic Republic of Iran,” he said in a speech. “As long as Iran has money, we will have money." Hamas is in a similar position and states that it is dependent on the Iranian regime.

As a result of Revolutionary Guards activity in the region, in 2019 the Iranian government lost its immunity in the United States. But long before the Iranian regime and Hezbollah publicly confirmed their close ties in terms of finance, training and the provision of military equipment, American courts had ruled against the Islamic Republic in dozen of complaints brought against the Iranian government for killing and inflicting irreparable physical and psychological harm on US citizens. The Iranian government was found to be explicitly responsible for actions committed by the Lebanese Hezbollah and Hamas and was sentenced and ordered to pay damages. Now, however, with the release of the photograph of the commander of the Revolutionary Guards’ Aerospace Force, the situation might even get worse.

More than $100 Billion in Damages

As of now, according to the US Department of Justice, the amount of damages that Iran must pay has surpassed $100 billion and the ruling by the courts allows the victims to confiscate Iranian assets as payment for damages. Up to this moment these lawsuits have been linked only to action taken by the Lebanese Hezbollah, the Palestinian Hamas and the Islamic Republic itself. However, now that the regime has also accepted responsibility for action taken by the Yemeni Houthis and by Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces, it has become easier for victims of these actions to file lawsuits against the Iranian government. In August 2019, for the first time, a United States court ruled that the Islamic Republic can be held accountable for the activities of the Houthis. A federal court in New York ruled that US citizens would be entitled to compensation for losses they had suffered as a result of operations carried out by the Houthis.

A similar situation arises when it comes to the Fatemiyoun and Zeinabyoun brigades. The Revolutionary Guards established both groups, though they are directly commanded by Afghan and Pakistani commanders following orders from the Guards. There have been many reports that Afghan refugees in Iran and Pakistan have been forced or fooled into joining these brigades and, by some estimates, close to 2,000 of them have been killed in Syria.

On January 5, Belquis Roshan, a member of the Afghan parliament, called the forcible recruitment of Afghans by the Revolutionary Guards and their deaths in Syria a “crime” [Persian link]. She said that that General Soleimani had committed numerous crimes in Afghanistan and was responsible for the deaths of at least 5,500 young Afghans and the disappearance of another 1,200 [Persian video].

By accepting responsibility for the actions of these groups and providing documented evidence for their victims and their families, it is quite conceivable that in the near or distant future, the Islamic Republic will be called by the international justice system to answer both for their actions and for the treatment of Afghan and Syrian civilians by the Fatemiyoun and Zeinabyoun brigades.

Related Coverage:

US Rules on Houthi Actions — And Iran is to Blame, 15 August 2019

How the Revolutionary Guards Wrecked Iran’s Diplomatic Immunity in the US, 2 July 2019

The Iranian Government Has No Sway Over the Revolutionary Guards, 1 July 2019

Why the US Cannot Believe Iran's Denials, 1 July 2019

Afghan Fighter in Syria: “We are Given Orders to Kill Ourselves if Captured”, 14 May 2019

Iran Still Uses Child Soldiers — And There’s No Way to Stop It, 30 April 2019

Iran Violates the Rights of Afghans by Sending them to War, 19 March 2019

US Accuses Iran of War Crimes, 14 November 2018

Iran Fools Afghan Recruits into Fighting in Syria, 26 September 2018

Hezbollah: Iran Keeps the Money Flowing, 26 June 2016