Khamenei Orders Immediate, Unrestricted Response to Any Threat

Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Seyed Mojtaba Khamenei, has ordered the armed forces to meet any threat with an immediate, impactful and geographically unrestricted response, according to a statement from his office reported on Saturday, October 31.

"Any level or type of threat must be met with an immediate, impactful, and geographically unrestricted response," Khamenei said in the statement, which was carried by IQNA, citing Rahbar.ir, the Supreme Leader's official site.

First reported meeting with senior commanders

Khamenei gave the order at a meeting with senior commanders of the Iranian Armed Forces. At the meeting he emphasised intelligent combat readiness for a powerful confrontation with enemies as a prerequisite for maximum deterrence, according to the statement reported by IQNA.

AFP reported that this was the first reported meeting between Khamenei and these senior commanders. Khamenei has not been publicly seen since he became supreme leader following his father Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's killing in US-Israeli strikes at the start of the war on February 28, 2026, AFP said.

Target database to be updated

Khamenei also ordered a comprehensive updating of the military target database. The update is intended to ensure that all kinds of physical and non-physical assets of the enemy, described in the statement as the US-Zionist enemy, are brought within the reach of the Armed Forces.

He set out the position Iran would take if attacks resume. "If the enemies once again launch military or terrorist attacks, it is the armed forces of the Islamic Republic and the Iranian nation that will determine the time and conditions for ending them," he said, in a statement reported by AFP.

Al Jazeera English, citing Iran's IRNA news agency, reported the same instruction as breaking news, saying Khamenei had told senior commanders to deliver an immediate, effective response without geographical limitations to any potential enemy threat.

Commanders report on readiness and production

Armed Forces Chief of Staff Maj. Gen. Ali Abdollahi, Army Commander Maj. Gen. Amir Hatami and IRGC Commander Maj. Gen. Ahmad Vahidi attended the meeting, according to Eastora News, which reported the statement from the Supreme Leader's office.

The commanders reported on readiness along the Persian Gulf coast, in the operational areas of the Strait of Hormuz and the Sea of Oman, and along Iran's northwestern and southeastern borders.

They also reported a multiple-fold increase in the production of ammunition and reconnaissance, support and combat weapons, according to the Supreme Leader's office. No independent data was provided to verify the production figures.

Talks in the background

The meeting took place a day after a Qatari delegation arrived in Tehran on Friday for talks with Iranian officials. The delegation arrived after Iran reportedly received a letter from US Vice-President JD Vance, AFP reported.

No attack has taken place. The statement is a directive and a warning issued at a commanders meeting, not a report of new fighting. No US or Israeli official response to the statement was included in the reports cited for this article.