March 29, 2026

Data Cutoff: 2:00 PM ET

Parker Hempel, Katherine Wells, Adham Fattah, Ria Reddy, and Annika Ganzeveld

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The Washington Post reported on March 29 that the combined force has struck four key Iranian ballistic missile production facilities and 29 missile launch bases since the start of the war. ISW-CTP has similarly recorded strikes on over 20 missile bases during the war. The Washington Post assessed that combined force airstrikes have caused “severe damage” to the Khojir, Shahroud, Parchin, and Hakimiyeh missile production facilities. Four experts told the Washington Post that the damage to these facilities has “most likely halted Iran’s ability to produce short-range and medium-range ballistic missiles until [the] facilities can be rebuilt.” The combined force has inflicted damage to the Khojir, Shahroud, Parchin, and Hakimiyeh sites.

Senior Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) officials continue to dismiss Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s concerns about Iran’s economic conditions amid Iran’s war with the United States and Israel. Anti-regime media reported on March 28 that there is a deepening rift between Pezeshkian and IRGC Commander Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi over the regime’s actions during the war and the war’s mounting economic and social costs, citing unspecified informed sources. Pezeshkian reportedly warned that the IRGC’s attacks on regional countries are exacerbating economic damage, cautioning that Iran’s economy could collapse within three to four weeks if Iran does not reach a ceasefire with the United States and Israel. This report is consistent with a March 16 report that Pezeshkian voiced concerns over the war’s impact on the Iranian economy but that an IRGC official dismissed Pezeshkian’s concerns. Pezeshkian has also reportedly demanded “the restoration of executive and managerial authorities” to the government, but Vahidi has rejected this demand, according to the March 28 anti-regime media report. The regime’s poor management of the economy, which includes rampant corruption and IRGC control over broad swaths of the economy, has long hurt the Iranian economy and recently triggered the December 2025-January 2026 anti-regime protests. The current conflict will likely further deteriorate Iran’s economic conditions. The combined force conducted airstrikes on several Iranian steel factories on March 27 and 28, which an Israeli military correspondent assessed are “expected to cause major damage” to the Iranian economy.

The Iranian regime appears to be appealing to nationalist sentiments to recruit members of the Iranian population to help the regime maintain internal security. The Wall Street Journal reported on March 29 that Iran has launched a recruitment campaign called “Janfada,” or “Sacrificing Life,” to recruit volunteers to fight US forces in the event of a US ground operation in Iran, citing a text message sent to Iranian mobile users. The name of this campaign suggests that the regime seeks to appeal to nationalist sentiments by calling on Iranians to sacrifice their lives for Iran. The name of the campaign notably echoes a popular Iranian protest slogan, although it is unclear whether the regime intentionally mirrored the language of this slogan. The Wall Street Journal report separately noted that security forces set up checkpoints in Esfahan City and surrounding towns on March 28.

• The Washington Post reported on March 29 that the combined force has struck four key Iranian ballistic missile production facilities and 29 missile launch bases since the start of the war. ISW-CTP has similarly recorded strikes on over 20 missile bases during the war.

• Senior Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) officials continue to dismiss Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s concerns about Iran’s economic conditions amid Iran’s war with the United States and Israel. Anti-regime media reported on March 28 that there is a deepening rift between Pezeshkian and IRGC Commander Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi over the regime’s actions during the war and the war’s mounting economic and social costs, citing unspecified informed sources.

• The Iranian regime appears to be appealing to nationalist sentiments to recruit members of the Iranian population to help the regime maintain internal security. The Wall Street Journal reported on March 29 that Iran has launched a recruitment campaign called “Janfada,” or “Sacrificing Life,” to recruit volunteers to fight US forces in the event of a US ground operation in Iran, citing a text message sent to Iranian mobile users.

• Russia continues to help Iran conduct attacks across the Middle East. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that Russia is providing Iran with satellite imagery of US military assets in the region. Zelensky said that Russia took satellite imagery of the US-UK base in Diego Garcia on March 24 as well as the Incirlik Airbase in Turkey, Al Udeid Airbase in Qatar, and the Shaybah oil and gas field in Saudi Arabia on March 26. Russian efforts to take images of these sites indicate that Russia is helping Iran attack not only US assets but also Turkish and British assets. Iran has attacked all of these sites since the war began.

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