Iran has announced its intention to attack the offices of 18 Western companies
Iran has warned that from April 1 it will launch strikes against branches of high-tech companies located in the Middle East, including Microsoft, Apple and Google. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps called it a response to attacks planned using artificial intelligence on the territory of the republic and the deaths of several Iranian citizens. The list of targets includes 18 Western giants, and their employees are advised to leave their jobs immediately to save their lives.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has issued a warning that the facilities of some Western companies in the Middle East may come under attack for their alleged complicity in attacks on Iran and its citizens. The corresponding statement of the IRGC was distributed by the Iranian media.
The publication notes that "the main element in the development and tracking of the targets of terrorist attacks [against Iran] are American companies working in the field of information technology and artificial intelligence." For this reason, the corps will henceforth consider them "legitimate targets" and inflict "crushing blows" on them.
"We advise the employees of these companies to leave their jobs immediately to save their lives. Residents of the surrounding areas in all countries of the region should also leave their homes within a one—kilometer radius and go to a safe place," the IRGC said in a statement.
The statement also notes that "companies actively involved in terrorist plans will become the target of countermeasures in response to any attempts" on Iranian citizens — that is, in fact, to any military action by the United States or Israel.
Threats and actions
These are not the first threats of this kind. On March 11, the headquarters of the republic's military command, Khatam al-Anbiya, had already stated that it could launch attacks on "economic centers" and banks in the Middle East linked to the United States and Israel. The list also mentioned Google, Microsoft, Palantir, IBM, Nvidia and Oracle, whose technologies are believed to be used for military purposes in Iran. Branches and offices of these companies are located in several countries of the Persian Gulf and in several cities of Israel.
The Iranian military command said it had already launched drone strikes against AT&T (American Telephone and Telegraph Company) and Siemens facilities located in Israel's Ben Gurion and Haifa, the Iranian Tasnim news agency reported.
Today, the Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic, Abbas Araghchi, promised that the Iranian Armed Forces would severely punish Israel for attacks on the country's pharmaceutical enterprises. According to Tehran, since the beginning of the armed conflict in the republic [...], 24 operating facilities in the field of pharmaceuticals, production of medical equipment and supply chains for them have been seriously damaged. The drugs that were produced there were used, among other things, for the treatment of multiple sclerosis and cancer.
Iran's new attacks on the United States
According to the IRNA news agency, IRGC spokesman Sardar Seyed Majid Mousavi said on March 31 [...] that Iran had used missiles and drones to attack "the location of American pilots and flight personnel in Al-Harj," with the "defeat of a group of 200 people."
In addition, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps today announced the identification of a "disguised location for the command staff of the US 5th Fleet" (this fleet is based in the Middle East. — "Newspaper.Ru»).
"At the time of the commanders' meeting, it was definitely hit by a drone. We expect that the CENTCOM report will describe this as "minor damage to the American forces," the IRGC said.
Alexander Kondratiev
