US President Donald Trump has designated Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a foreign terrorist organisation.
It is the first time the US has labelled another nation’s military as a terrorist organisation.
Iran retaliated by declaring US forces in the Middle East as a terrorist organisation.
Washington-Tehran tensions have risen since Trump withdrew the US from the international Iran nuclear pact.
Labelling the Guards as a terrorist organisation will allow the US to impose further sanctions – particularly affecting the business sector, given the IRGC’s involvement in Iran’s economy.
A number of IRGC and affiliated entities have already been targeted by US sanctions for alleged proliferation activities, support for terrorism and human rights abuses.