Iran Update, March 13, 2025
Andie Parry, Katherine Wells, Carolyn Moorman, Alexandra Braverman, Ria Reddy, Siddhant Kishore, Alexis Thomas, Annika Ganzeveld, and Nicholas Carl
Information Cutoff: 2:00 pm ET
The Critical Threats Project (CTP) at the American Enterprise Institute and the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) publish the Iran Update, which provides insights into Iranian and Iranian-sponsored activities that undermine regional stability and threaten US forces and interests. CTP-ISW publishes the Iran Update every weekday.
Click here to see CTP and ISW’s interactive map of Israeli ground operations, and here to see CTP and ISW’s interactive map of the ongoing opposition offensive in Syria. These maps are updated daily alongside the static maps present in this report.
We do not report in detail on war crimes because these activities are well-covered in Western media and do not directly affect the military operations we are assessing and forecasting. We utterly condemn violations of the laws of armed conflict and the Geneva Conventions and crimes against humanity even though we do not describe them in these reports.
The Houthis have sought to obtain hydrogen fuel cells from unspecified Chinese suppliers to increase the range and payloads of their drones, according to a November 2024 Conflict Armament Research (CAR) investigation.[1] CAR reported that the Yemeni National Resistance Forces seized hydrogen cylinders bound for the Houthis in August 2024 that the Houthis intended to use for drone production.[2] CAR reported that the range of hydrogen-powered drones is at least three times greater than other drones. The Houthis conducted frequent drone attacks against Israel during the October 7 War and could use hydrogen-powered drones to attack Israel, commercial shipping, and US interests in the region. The Houthis announced on March 11 the resumption of their attack campaign on international shipping.[3]
Interim Syrian President Ahmed al Shara signed a draft constitution on March 13 that initiates a five-year transition period.[4] The Constitutional Committee emphasized that the document ensures a separation of powers between the legislative, executive, and judicial branches.[5] The document is based on Islamic jurisprudence but protects religious freedoms.[6] The constitution also grants Syrian women rights to education, employment, and political participation.[7] The constitution enshrines the freedoms of opinion, expression, information, publication and the press.[8] The constitution reflects the topics that Syrians discussed at the National Dialogue Conference in late February 2025, including transitional justice, personal liberties, the role of civil society, and economic principles.[9] The principles enshrined in the constitution are encouraging and may alleviate Western concerns that Shara’s Salafi-jihadi roots will negatively impact ethnic, gender, and religious protections.
Shara could use some of the articles in the constitution to consolidate his power over the Syrian state. Shara will appoint a third of the Syrian legislature, called the People’s Assembly. Shara could appoint individuals who are loyal to him and reluctant to hold him accountable.[10] Shara will...
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