What is the IRGC Quds Force?: The IRGC Quds Force is Iran's extraterritorial special operations branch, responsible for training, equipping, and directing proxy militias — including Hezbollah, Hamas, Kataib Hezbollah, and Ansar Allah — across the Middle East.
Who commands the IRGC Quds Force?: Esmail Qaani has commanded the Quds Force since Qasem Soleimani was killed by a US drone strike in January 2020. In 2026 Qaani was reported detained by the IRGC's own intelligence wing on espionage suspicions.
What happened to the Quds Force in Lebanon?: Quds Force officers embedded with Hezbollah in Beirut fled their positions as Israeli forces systematically targeted the network, ending Iran's four-decade physical presence in Lebanon.
Did the IRGC threaten tourist sites?: Iran's military spokesman Gen Abolfazl Shekarchi warned that tourist sites worldwide would not be SAFE, a threat presumed to be routed through the Quds Force's global proxy and operative networks.
What proxies does the Quds Force run?: The Quds Force's axis of resistance network includes Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Gaza, Kataib Hezbollah in Iraq, and Ansar Allah (Houthis) in Yemen.

Background

Built by Qasem Soleimani (killed by US drone strike in 2020) across four decades, the Quds Force network spans Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in Gaza, Kataib Hezbollah in Iraq, and Ansar Allah in Yemen. Iran's military spokesman warned that tourist sites worldwide would not be SAFE, a threat routed through those same proxy networks.

The IRGC Quds Force is the extraterritorial operations branch of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, responsible for training, equipping, and directing proxy militias across the Middle East. Since the 2026 conflict began, the force has suffered its most serious institutional crisis: its commander, Esmail Qaani, was reported detained on suspicion of espionage for Mossad, and dozens of officers embedded with Hezbollah in Beirut fled as Israeli forces targeted their network.

By late March, Lebanon was outfiring Iran against Israel, with Hezbollah committing 30,000 fighters independently of Quds Force direction. Lebanese President Aoun then broke with Hezbollah and sought Israeli talks, raising the question of whether the Quds Force retains meaningful authority over the network it spent four decades constructing.

Source Material

Quds Force — Wikipedia Quds Force: Iran's elite foreign operations unit

How the World Sees Them

Iran

The Quds Force is Iran's primary instrument of strategic depth, distributing military capacity across neighbouring states to deter direct attack on the homeland. The collapse of its Lebanon network and detention of its commander represent the largest single degradation of that deterrent since the force was established.

Israel

Israel's targeting of Quds Force officers in Beirut is the operational expression of a strategy pursued since the 2024 Hezbollah leadership decapitations. Removing Iran's physical command link to Hezbollah does not neutralise 30,000 committed fighters who have already demonstrated they will act independently.

Lebanon

Beirut has always tolerated the Quds Force's presence as a fait accompli while officially denying sovereign endorsement of its activities. President Aoun's call for Israeli talks signals the Lebanese state is attempting to reclaim that space, but whether Hezbollah's military command accepts Beirut's authority remains unanswered.

United States

Washington designated the IRGC and Quds Force as foreign terrorist organisations in 2019, making Quds Force operatives legitimate military targets under US rules of engagement. The Beirut network collapse is an outcome the US has sought since 2020; the concern is whether reconstitution capacity was again underestimated.