Since the beginning of the U.S.-Iran conflict, media and government sources have become aware thatthe IRGCis a force distinct from and parallel toIran’s officialarmed forces. There is, however, yet another military force that needs to be considered, particularly concerning mine-laying anddrone operationsin the Strait of Hormuz, as well as any potential ground invasion of Iran.
With Iran’s conventional air and naval forces largely destroyed, the Basij militia has emerged as the regime’s primary surviving instrument of coercive power, one that most coverage has not adequately examined.
The Basij, formally the Sazman-e Basij-e Mostaz’afin, or “Organization forMobilization of the Oppressed,” is a paramilitary militia of volunteers constituting one of the five branches of the IRGC, alongside the Ground Forces, Aerospace Force, Navy, and Quds Force. Ayatollah Khomeini established the group in 1979 to mobilize ordinary Iranians, especially youth and working-class volunteers, to defend the fledgling regime against internal and external threats.
Estimates vary widely depending on source methodology. Iraniangovernment-linkedfigures have cited12.6 million members, including women, with perhaps 600,000 combat-capable. Independent Western analysts, however, place mobilizable or combat-capable Basij forces in the 450,000–600,000 range, with upper-range wartime mobilization scenarios reaching 1 million.
Internal sources suggest the real number fluctuates between 1.5 and 3 million personnel organized into approximately 2,500 battalions. According to the IISS Military Balance 2026, the Basij can mobilize an estimated 600,000 to 1 million personnel in wartime, though training and equipment levels vary dramatically.
Membership is divided into three tiers: regular, active, and special. Regular members are part-time volunteers who receive basic benefits such as coupons and discounts; they serve primarily as a passive intelligence and early-warning network. Active members undergo formalized indoctrination and basic military training and serve more frequently at local bases. Special members constitute the leadership tier, with access to resources and capabilities not available at lower levels.
The Basij consists primarily of young working-class men, or boys under 18, who have yet to begin a career, marry, or have children. Benefits for members include exemption from the 21 months of compulsory military service, reserved university spots, and a small stipend, alongside an initial month and a half of military and ideological training.
The Basij has cells in practically every Iranian city and is present in schools, universities, healthcare, the military, law enforcement, and other social institutions.
Following the destruction of conventional Iranian military assets, the Basij has adapted structurally. As a result of the 2026 conflict, the Basij has been broken into tens of thousands of cells fanned out across mosques, schools, and encampments under bridges. Since the start of the war, Iranian police have deployed 1,463 “special checkpoints,” and in mid-March Israeli drones began attacking Basij and IRGC checkpoints, forcing some to relocate under highway overpasses and bridges.
Critically, analysts note that despite the scale of U.S. and Israeli strikes, the Islamic Republic’s true believers in the IRGC and Basij are operating without known defections, using intimidation to suppress any Iranian who might heed calls for revolt.
Source: The Gateway Pundit
