The head of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Hossein Salami, recently gave a speech in which he discussed the importance of Iran’s investment in local industries. This has long been an Iranian focus because of sanctions. The IRGC plays a role in this through such organizations as Khatam al-Anbiya, a construction and engineering firm.  

Salami in his speech heralded the important of the Khatam al-Anbiya in helping Iran maintain its independent production under sanctions. He says that “this is the brilliance and has not allowed any of the workshops, plans and projects that produce all high concepts of dignity, pride, epic, honor, etc.” He celebrated the construction company as being the heart of the country’s history “working to build a glorious and a strong Iran.”

Although one can read this as just boilerplate propaganda the reality is that Iran’s IRGC does believe in this concept. It wants to control Iran’s military industrial complex. It doesn’t mind Iran being under sanctions, because it can profit off more control. It profits either way, so it’s not as if sanctions help the IRGC, but it exploits the position of Iran to gobble up resources.

One can get a sense of the IRGC’s agenda in his words. “When a refinery is opened, a power plant is put into operation or a dam is opened, the foundations for the growth of this society are formed, but this refinery and power plant are the embodiment of our honor, sacrifice and allegiance with these people and the embodiment of religion's ability to manage the society.” What he means is that the organizing force behind Iran is the IRGC and also the “Islamic” aspect of the “Islamic republic” and thus the IRGC must have a hand in every project, the way a large mafia has a hand in every construction project in a major city.

The IRGC is much more than a paramilitary group

The IRGC periodically gives these kinds of speeches. In this element it shows that it is much more than just a paramilitary group. It is at the forefront of Iran’s missile and drone programs. It organizes much of the naval activity on the coast. It is responsible for the foreign wars around the region. It controls construction and other projects.
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Commander-in-Chief Major General Hossein Salami speaks during a parliament meeting in Tehran, Iran, January 22, 2023. (credit: Iranian Parliament website/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS)
Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Commander-in-Chief Major General Hossein Salami speaks during a parliament meeting in Tehran, Iran, January 22, 2023. (credit: Iranian Parliament website/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS)
This octopus-like aspect of the IRGC is well known. That is why sanctions often target people involved in this octopus. However, the overall power of the IRGC goes beyond the state itself. This is what makes the regime so powerful, because it goes beyond just the normal functionings of a state, into a kind of supranational organization. The state thus cedes authority to the IRGC and it devours other states or parts of states as well, including Iraq, Syria and Lebanon. The overall context of Salami’s recent speech should be seen in this light.