Iran's supreme leader orders an immediate response to any U.S. or Israeli attack as talks on reopening Hormuz continue

Iran's supreme leader ordered the country's armed forces Saturday to meet "any kind and level of threat" from the United States or Israel with an immediate response, one without geographic limits, even as Iranian diplomats in Qatar worked on a plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei made the remarks at a meeting with senior military commanders, the official IRNA news agency reported, according to The Associated Press. He also called for an updated list of potential U.S. and Israeli targets. Khamenei has not been seen in public since the war began with U.S. and Israeli strikes on Feb. 28, the AP said. The commanders at the meeting included armed forces Chief of Staff Ali Abdollahi and Revolutionary Guard commander Ahmad Vahidi, Xinhua reported.

Hours later, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told the Qatar-based broadcaster Al Jazeera that talks with Qatari mediators had produced a proposal to fully reopen the strait within two days. "The Qatari side proposed shortening the implementation period of the Iranian proposal to five days. We have reached a proposal at this stage that reduces the implementation period to two days," he said, as quoted by Iran International.

Iran's conditions include lifting sanctions imposed after what Araghchi called the Islamabad memorandum, reducing U.S. forces in the region, restoring waivers for Iranian oil sales and releasing frozen Iranian funds, including money held in Qatar, Iran International reported. A similar offer Araghchi made last month to reopen the waterway within a week was rejected, the AP said.

Araghchi said Iran was not planning to meet with U.S. officials but viewed recent American efforts toward broader dialogue as a positive step. The strait carries a large share of the world's oil, and the standoff comes days before Tuesday's U.S. midterm elections.