Khamenei Threatens 'Decisive Response' Against Israel and the US; Negative Market Reactions

The leader of the Islamic Republic states that Israel and the United States will receive a 'decisive response' following Israel's attack on Iran on November 5 and the killing of leaders of Iran-backed groups. Ali Khamenei, on Saturday, November 12, in his speech marking the anniversary of the 45-year-old attack on the US embassy in Tehran, threatened the US and Israel, saying, 'They will definitely receive a decisive response for what they are doing against Iran and the resistance front.' He also stated, 'Everything that needs to be done for the readiness of the Iranian nation, whether in military terms, in terms of weapons, or in political actions, will certainly be done,' adding, 'Officials are currently engaged in this.' Khamenei's remarks are directed at the November 5 Israeli attack on some military facilities in Iran, which was a response to the IRGC's extensive missile attack on Israel. Khamenei had previously stated on November 6 that the Israeli attack should not be exaggerated or minimized. He did not clarify whether Iran's response to Israel would be through a direct missile attack from Iranian territory as in previous months, but Axios reported that Israeli intelligence suggests Iran is preparing to attack Israel from 'Iraqi territory in the coming days.' Haidar al-Lami, a senior member of the political office of the Islamic Resistance Movement 'Nujaba,' a proxy group of the Islamic Republic in Iraq, also stated to the Lebanese news site 'Al-Akhbar' that this group is in 'full coordination' with Iran to respond to the November 25 Israeli attack on Iranian military facilities. He emphasized that 'the Islamic Republic has the right to attack Israel from any point in Iraq.' Initially, Iranian officials downplayed the recent Israeli attack, claiming that the air defense had performed successfully, but a couple of days later, IRGC commanders promised a renewed attack on Israel, and now the Supreme Leader is also speaking of a 'certain decisive response.' Khamenei stressed that the Iranian government 'will not delay or neglect in this regard. You can be sure of that.' In the November 5 attack, experts reported that Israel inflicted serious damage on Iran's missile facilities and defense systems. The impact of Khamenei's statements on the markets saw a 1% increase in global oil prices, but his remarks negatively affected domestic markets. The dollar rate in the free market in Iran on Saturday, November 12, surged by 1,050 tomans to reach 69,500 tomans. Since the last missile attack by Iran on Israel on October 1, the Iranian rial has lost 14% of its value. Following consecutive growth in the stock market last week, approximately 183 billion tomans of real money exited the stock market on Saturday. Since October 1, around 7 trillion tomans of real money have left the stock market. The prices of various gold coins also surged between 1% and 4% today, setting new records. The price of the Imam coin increased by 2% to 54.2 million tomans, and the price of the Bahar Azadi coin rose by 1.5% to 50 million tomans. The most significant price jump was for the quarter coin, which increased by 4% to 18.5 million tomans. The prices of various coins have surged between 12% and 19% since October 1.