(Bloomberg) -- After Iran said it would respond to Israel’s Saturday strikes on its missile and air defense systems in a corresponding fashion, the Israeli government moved its regular meeting to an undisclosed location.
Israeli officials said that, for security reasons, the cabinet didn’t meet at its usual place in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office in Jerusalem or in an occasionally used secure part of the defense ministry in Tel Aviv. The actual venue is being kept under wraps.
It’s unclear if the cabinet was acting on specific intelligence or was being especially cautious, but an Israeli defense official told Bloomberg News that the government is increasingly concerned Iran will strike back, possibly using ballistic missiles as it did on Oct. 1, despite the relatively restrained nature of Israel’s assault.
Iran said it would respond to Israel’s sending of more than 100 fighter planes to bomb the country in an appropriate fashion, without being more specific.
“The nature of our response will correspond to the type of attack carried out,” Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei told reporters on Monday. “Iran will not forgo its right to respond to Israel’s aggression.”
Israel’s assault was itself a retaliation for Iran’s firing of 200 ballistic missiles at the start of the month, the second such direct barrage by the Islamic Republic after an initial salvo in April. Both exchanges came amid ongoing fighting between Israel and Iran-backed militia groups, chiefly Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, that many fear will evolve into a regional war.
Israel isn’t ruling out retaliation soon by Iran, despite initial impressions that Tehran was seeking to downplay Saturday’s attack as unworthy of a response. Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said in the aftermath that his country would “answer stupidity with wisdom and strategy.”
The measured element of the attack helped to calm markets, with oil tumbling about 6% at the start of the week and the Israeli shekel performing better than any other currency in the world.
How the Israel-Iran Conflict Shapes the Middle East: QuickTake
The head of the Israeli military, Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi, said on Sunday that Israel had restrained itself in its attack early the previous day, which killed five Iranians, four of them soldiers.
“We drew upon only some of our abilities,” Halevi said. “We have the ability to do much more.”
Israel can count on ongoing defense support from the US, which helped limit the impact of both of Iran’s air attacks this year, while a new laser system that can intercept rockets, drones and mortars at negligible cost is expected to be operational next year.
Energy Sites
Israel avoided hitting energy or nuclear facilities, in keeping with requests by the US, which is braced for a crucial presidential election on Nov. 5. US officials had feared an attack on those targets in the OPEC member could have triggered a surge in energy prices and even a full-blown war.
“It looks like they didn’t hit anything other than military targets,” President Joe Biden said afterward. “I hope this is the end.”
Israeli officials say some of what was hit on Saturday were defense systems protecting energy and other infrastructure so that if Iran retaliates Israel will be able to strike back at an opponent less capable of defending itself. A spokesperson for Netanyahu confirmed Israeli media reports Monday that the prime minister said during the cabinet meeting that he hadn’t ruled out the option of taking action against Iran’s nuclear facilities.
Israel is still fighting against Hamas and Hezbollah, both considered terrorist groups by the US. Spy chiefs were meeting counterparts in the Qatari capital of Doha on Monday in efforts to establish a cease-fire in Gaza and the release of Israeli hostages taken by Hamas more than a year ago.
--With assistance from Dan Williams.
(Updates with defense official in third paragraph.)
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.