Iran Flag

“A Pentagon report to Congress about Iran’s current and future military strategy noted the activities of an elite unit, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps – Qod Force.

The Qod Force’s role is to “clandestinely exert military, political and economic power to advance Iranian national interests abroad.” Those activities range from gathering intelligence to supplying training, arms and financial support to surrogate groups and terrorist organizations, according to the 12-page unclassified version of the report. Those groups include Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Palestine.

The Qods Force is well-established in the Middle East and North Africa “and recent years have witnessed an increased presence in Latin America, particularly Venezuela,” the Pentagon report said, noting that if the U.S. gets more involved in local conflicts in those regions, contact with the Qods Force “directly, or through extremist groups it supports, will be more frequent and consequential.”

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