The Rise of the Pasdaran: Assessing the Domestic Roles of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps

by Frederic Wehrey Carnegie Endowment for International Peace author of Sectarian Politics in

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) has evolved well beyond its origins as an ideological guard for the regime. Today, in addition to wielding military force, its influence extends into virtually every corner of Iranian political life and society. Wehrey et al. assess the IRGC less as a traditional military entity and more as a domestic actor, emphasizing the variety of roles it plays in Iran1s economy and political culture.

Genres: Iran, Research

154 pages, Paperback

First published June 10, 2008

Reviews

[Christiaan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick read, providing an interesting account of the IRGC's economic ventures and internal makeup/fissures. Unfortunately, there is no overview of the group's ideology or eschatological aims, as I had hoped.

[Brian H. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad, but a bit short for such a complex and deep topic. More of a surface-level overview than a study, but that may work for some people. I have to say, this book takes the prize for most uses of "laser eye surgery" in a book that I've ever read...I think it was mentioned over 5 times throughout the short book.

[Grigory]

There's an interesting part about how Pasdaran needed to oversee smuggling and other "parallel" activities to circumvent sanctions. The rest is as you might expect: like any big organization it has wings. As any organization in both business and military it has conflicts of interest. There's interesting comparison with Pakistan and China as well