Iran's Supreme Leader Posts Ominous Threat as Drones Approach Israel

Shortly after launching drone attacks against Israel, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei issued an ominous threat on social media.

The Context:

Iran's drone attacks against Israel on Saturday come in the wake of an Israeli strike that killed 12 people in total, including two Iranian generals and five other officers, earlier this month in Syria.

Tension between Israel and Iran has been mounting since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war when the Palestinian militant group launched a surprise attack killing 1,200 people in Israel on October 7, 2023. Israel subsequently launched an operation to target Hamas in Gaza, killing over 30,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials.

The Israeli Defense Force (IDF) told Newsweek that Iran launched unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) from within its territory toward Israel.

A spokesperson for IDF said during a press briefing on Saturday evening that the "goal is to intercept the drones and and anything else that that may come." IDF would not confirm if it had intercepted any drones or what their intended targets were. While over 100 drones had been launched, IDF said that Israel's air defenses were prepared for the attack.

U.S. and Israeli officials have both accused Iran of providing not only political, but also material backing to Hamas and Islamic Jihad, as well as other militias abroad such as Lebanon's Hezbollah, Yemen's Ansar Allah, also known as the Houthi movement, and an array of forces in Iraq and Syria.

What We Know:

Khamenei vowed on Saturday to punish Israel in response to the deadly strike on the Islamic Republic's embassy in Syria.

In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Khamenei shared a roughly minute-long video of a speech he gave on Wednesday and wrote: "The malicious Zionist regime will be punished."

"The malicious regime itself, which is all malice, evil, and error, added another mistake to its own errors by launching an attack on the Iranian consulate in Syria," he said during his speech. "The malicious regime has made a wrong move in this case. It should be punished, and it will be punished."

Newsweek reached out via email on Saturday evening to representatives for Tehran for comment.

Views:

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded to the attack in a post on X where he shared a video clip.

"The State of Israel is strong, the IDF is strong, the people of Israel are strong," Netanyahu wrote. "Together we will stand, and with God's help - together we will overcome all our enemies."

United States President Joe Biden has expressed continued support for Israel, a U.S. ally, since the start of the war.

The president wrote on X: "I just met with my national security team for an update on Iran's attacks against Israel. Our commitment to Israel's security against threats from Iran and its proxies is ironclad."

National Security Council (NSC) spokesperson Adrienne Watson told Newsweek via email that Biden is being regularly updated on the situation by his national security team and that the White House is in "constant communication" with Israeli officials and allies.

"President Biden has been clear: our support for Israel's security is ironclad," she added. "The United States will stand with the people of Israel and support their defense against these threats from Iran."

What's Next?

IDF said Israeli authorities expect to conduct a "situation assessment" early Sunday morning.

Update 4/13/24, 8:50 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information and comment from Biden.

Update 4/13/24, 6:27 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information and comment IDF.