Iran has designated Argentina’s Navy and Air Force as terrorist organisations in retaliation for Buenos Aires’ decision to classify Tehran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist group.
The move marks a further escalation of tensions between the two countries over Iran’s alleged links to militant activities and Argentina’s position on the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community centre in Buenos Aires.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry announced the designation in a statement on Wednesday, saying the Argentine military branches were covered by a 2019 Iranian law that allows the country to take retaliatory measures against governments that designate its military forces as terrorist organisations.
“Tehran deems the Argentine Navy and the Argentine Air Force subject to the aforementioned law and its provisions, and designates them as terrorist organisations,” the ministry said.
Argentina designated Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the ideological arm of its military, as a terrorist organisation in late March, citing its alleged support for Hezbollah, a Lebanese militant group.
Buenos Aires has also accused the IRGC of involvement in the 1994 bombing of the AMIA Jewish community centre in the Argentine capital, which killed 85 people and injured hundreds of others.
The practical implications of Iran’s latest designation were not immediately clear.
Earlier this month, Tehran also designated Britain’s intelligence agency, MI6, as a hostile group and classified the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force as terrorist organisations.
The move followed the United Kingdom’s decision in July to designate Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organisation.