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Mojtaba Khamenei Orders Iran’s Armed Forces To Respond Immediately Without Geographic Limits

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Khamenei orders immediate, geographically unrestricted response to any threat from enemies. Directives include updating target bank and strengthening defenses for rapid retaliation.

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Khamenei sets deterrence

Mojtaba Khamenei issued a strongly worded message to Iran’s armed forces, telling them to prepare for an “immediate and effective response, without geographical restriction” if the country is attacked again. Khamenei’s office said he met with senior military commanders and gave them “important strategic directives,” including “maximum deterrence” through preparedness for an immediate response.

Qatar’s senior diplomats held extensive talks in Tehran on Friday, with further talks expected on Saturday as mediators tried to prevent a new breakout of war between Iran and the United States. Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei ordered the armed forces to respond immediately “without any geographical restrictions to any threat from the enemy,” while the Al Jazeera account tied the directive to ongoing US and Israel threats to resume strikes after the midterm elections scheduled for November 3.

Reporting for this sectionAl JazeeraBBC

Mediators, letters, and talks

The Al Jazeera account said US Vice President JD Vance wrote a letter to Tehran, reportedly addressed to Mohsen Rezaei, and that the letter’s exact details were unclear. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said President Donald Trump has not yet made a decision regarding resuming military operations against Iran, and Rubio did not know whether there is a specific time frame for Qatar-led talks. Tehran’s proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within several days in exchange for a return to the June memorandum of understanding remained the baseline for mediated negotiations.

Tehran’s demands included the lifting of a US maritime blockade on Iranian ports, waivers on oil sanctions, and a truce for regional conflicts including in Lebanon where Israeli forces continue to occupy the country’s south. The BBC added that Reuters had reported earlier on Saturday that Iranian officials met with Qatari mediators in Doha, while IRNA reported Khamenei met senior armed forces commanders.

Reporting for this sectionAl JazeeraBBC

Readiness across the strait

Khamenei ordered commanders to update the target bank to include various “material and non-material assets of the American and Israeli enemy within the reach of the armed forces,” and he directed that military intelligence infrastructure be strengthened. The Al Jazeera account said Iranian state television claimed at least six tankers, including a very large crude carrier bearing two million barrels of oil, were damaged by explosions after allegedly hitting mines in recent days while transiting “unauthorised” routes in the strait. Khamenei stressed strengthening the military intelligence backbone, deepening independent national defense in the fields of “doctrine” and “tactics,” and developing defensive and security capabilities by leveraging modern technologies.

The Al Jazeera account also said local authorities reported on Saturday afternoon that two fishing boats were bombed by a US drone south of Qeshm island in southern Iran, wounding several fishermen. The BBC framed the meeting as the first such encounter announced between Khamenei and senior military leaders, including Chief of the General Staff Ali Abdollahi, Army Commander Amir Hatami, and IRGC Commander Ahmad Vahidi.

Reporting for this sectionAl JazeeraBBC