The chessboard of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is in a state that is apparently set to address both security infiltrations and political revelations within the system.
The pace of security and intelligence developments within the Iranian IRGC and its main actors over the past week shows that they are apparently trying to open a new path, this time aimed more at the IRGC’s internal agents, security leakers, and to ending the power struggle, instead of focusing on its foreign enemies.
IRGC’s first movement began with the removal of its security Chief Hossein Taeb, the commander of the Iranian IRGC intelligence organization, who was referred to as the mastermind of the system’s security and the closest person in the security apparatus of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Ali Khamenei.
But the important point of this change was Taeb’s successor; Mohammad Kazemi, the Revolutionary Guards’ defense commander, a man known as the “mysterious commander of the Revolutionary Guards” and his main task is to uncover links of influence, espionage, and economic and moral corruption in the Revolutionary Guards.
Whatever the outcome of these developments, this week’s hacker attack on Khuzestan Steel Company shows that information and security pollution has gained a wider scope in the Islamic Republic, and the change of Hossein Taeb may reduce the scope of exposing the scandals of regime leaders and hostage-taking within the government, but not fully stop the penetration.
Iran and Israel have been engaged in a years-long shadow war but tensions have ratcheted up following a string of high-profile incidents Tehran has blamed on Jerusalem.
A number of members of the IRGC and scientists have been killed in recent weeks, with Iran often pointing the finger at Israel.
Iran reportedly suspects Israel killed two Iranian scientists several weeks ago by poisoning their food. The details of the men’s work, the circumstances of their deaths, and their ties to the government remain unclear.