Brussels/IBNS, Jan. 30 -- The European Union has formally added Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to its list of terrorist organisations, marking a dramatic escalation in Brussels' response to Tehran's violent suppression of anti-government protests.

The move follows weeks of unrest in Iran, during which human rights groups say security forces, including the IRGC, killed thousands of demonstrators.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the designation was unavoidable, declaring that "repression cannot go unanswered."

By blacklisting the IRGC, the EU places Iran's most influential military force in the same category as extremist groups such as al-Qaeda and the Islamic State.

According to international rights organisati...