The mafia running a country, and you've probably never heard their name.
51 minSeason 1 • Episode 2
LatestThe Revolutionary Guard is circumventing international sanctions and strengthening its influence in the Middle East.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps or IRGC is the protector of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the military arm of the Supreme Leader. Also known as the Pasdaran, this deep-state mafia comprising 120,000 men has extensive powers, ensuring bloody repression of the people. No strangers to smuggling and trafficking, the IRGC’s economic empire is worth hundreds of billions of dollars. The Supreme Leader Khomeini has allowed the organization to infiltrate the state and its members are now mayors, members of parliament and ministers, cultivating their networks at the highest levels. The IRGC is responsible for Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs, and cultivates not only the art of deterrence, but also a strategy of asymmetrical warfare via the militias and terrorist organizations they finance, arm, and control across the Middle East.
Direction
Julie Lerat builds tension like a spy thriller using only documents and testimony.
Editing
Cold archival footage cut with present-day consequences—no narration needed.
Creator
Julie Lerat
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The IRGC's name rarely appears in Western headlines despite controlling more economic assets than most Fortune 500 companies combined—a deliberate opacity the documentary suggests is strategic, not accidental.
Director Julie Lerat previously covered Hezbollah financing; this project reportedly required filming in three countries with crew using pseudonyms due to IRGC's documented history of targeting journalists and sources.
FR
