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Gold Plunges Toward $3,990 per Ounce… Why Is the Safe-Haven Asset Falling Despite Escalating Wars and Surging Oil Prices?
23 October 2026 | Global Markets
Gold continues its sharp decline after breaking below the psychological threshold of $4,000 per ounce, approaching the $3,990 level and reaching its lowest price since mid-July.
According to Reuters, the precious metal has lost approximately 3.2% this week, even as geopolitical and economic risks continue to escalate worldwide.
But why is gold falling while wars and geopolitical tensions are intensifying?
1. Rising Oil Prices Are Turning Against Gold!
Attacks on Saudi facilities and growing concerns over disruptions to energy supplies have pushed oil prices higher, reigniting fears of global inflation.
The paradox is that rising oil prices, which might normally strengthen demand for gold as a safe-haven asset, are now putting downward pressure on the metal by increasing the likelihood that US interest rates will remain elevated for longer.
2. The US Federal Reserve
Recent US inflation figures came in higher than expected, strengthening market expectations that monetary policy will remain restrictive for an extended period.
Investors are now awaiting the Federal Reserve’s October 27–28 meeting. Although markets widely expect interest rates to remain unchanged, concerns persist about potential increases later.
Gold generates no interest income, making bonds and other yield-bearing assets more attractive when interest rates are expected to rise.
3. The Technology Stock Sell-Off Is Forcing Investors to Sell Gold
This is one of the most important factors that may explain the speed of the decline.
As shares of technology companies linked to artificial intelligence came under pressure, some investors were forced to sell other assets to raise cash and cover their financial positions.
According to analysts cited by Reuters and Bloomberg, gold itself has become a readily available source of liquidity.
In other words, some investors are not selling gold because they have lost confidence in it, but because they urgently need cash.
4. Dollar Strength and Technical Selling Pressure
The strengthening US dollar and elevated bond yields in recent weeks have also weakened gold’s appeal.
As prices break through successive technical support levels, selling pressure may accelerate through stop-loss orders and the liquidation of leveraged positions, although the precise contribution of these factors to the current decline remains unclear.
The Observer’s Analysis | Has Gold Reached Its Bottom?
Gold is now approaching the $3,990 zone, which traders are watching as an important technical level.
▪️ $4,000: A major psychological threshold that gold has temporarily lost.
▪️ $3,990: A critical testing zone, although reaching this level does not confirm that a market bottom has formed.
▪️ $3,900: The next potential support level being monitored by some analysts if selling pressure continues.
The Bottom Line:
What we are witnessing is not necessarily a collapse of confidence in gold, but a struggle between two opposing forces:
Geopolitical risks, which support demand for the precious metal.
Restrictive monetary policy and the urgent need for liquidity, which are putting downward pressure on its price.
The irony is that wars driving oil prices higher can, through their impact on inflation and interest rates, become a reason for gold to decline in the short term.
As for declaring the sell-off over or predicting the beginning of a new upward trend, it is still too early without clear signs of price stabilization.
SYRIA RISES AGAINST ISRAELI OCCUPATION | Protests Spread from Idlib to Quneitra and Damascus as Outrage Grows Over the Killing of a Civilian with Disabilities by Israeli Forces!
23 October 2026 | Syria
Several Syrian provinces witnessed demonstrations and protest gatherings on Friday, condemning Israel’s ongoing military incursions into Daraa and Quneitra and expressing solidarity with Muath Salama al-Baeer, who was shot dead by Israeli forces during a raid on the village of Jamla in western Daraa.
Protests spread across Syria: Public demonstrations took place in Idlib, Damascus, Homs, Quneitra, and Hasakah, with protesters demanding an end to Israeli occupation and reaffirming Syria’s territorial unity and sovereignty.
In Damascus, demonstrators gathered outside the United Nations building, while similar protests were held in Khan Arnabah and Homs’ Clock Square.
The killing that ignited public outrage: Muath Salama al-Baeer was killed in the early hours of Thursday, 22 October.
According to witness testimonies reported by Anadolu Agency, al-Baeer had a hearing disability and failed to respond to Israeli soldiers ordering him to stop, prompting them to open fire.
Local residents insisted that he was unarmed. The Israeli military, meanwhile, claimed its soldiers fired at an individual they perceived as a threat and said the incident was under review.
Who is behind the demonstrations? The initial public calls for protests came from Syrian activists and civil society groups under slogans including
“Quneitra Is Not Alone”
and
“Southern Syria Is a National Cause That Unites Us All.”
Residents, relatives of victims, and families of detainees subsequently joined the demonstrations.
There is currently no credible evidence establishing that the Syrian government or any single political organization is directing the entire protest movement.
How has the Syrian government responded?
▪️ Justice Minister Mazhar al-Wais: Praised Friday’s demonstrations, describing them as a clear national and legal expression of opposition to Israeli violations and a reaffirmation of Syrian unity.
▪️ Foreign Ministry: Condemned al-Baeer’s killing and held Israel responsible. The ministry had previously denounced the escalating Israeli incursions into southern Syria on 18 October and called for international intervention.
▪️ Security forces: According to local reports, Internal Security Forces personnel were deployed to secure the demonstrations in Khan Arnabah, Quneitra.
Latest developments on the ground: Israeli military incursions continued despite the demonstrations.
According to Syria’s official news agency, SANA, an Israeli force accompanied by a bulldozer and military vehicles entered an area west of al-Zaaroura Farm in southern Quneitra on Friday, blocking several roads and restricting civilian movement.
THE OBSERVER’S ANALYSIS | The Streets Are Mobilizing… But What Comes After Condemnation?
These demonstrations reveal something politically significant: opposition to Israeli occupation extends beyond Syria’s political and regional divisions.
Yet the contradiction is striking.
While Syrians take to the streets demanding an end to Israeli aggression, Israel continues establishing new military realities on Syrian territory.
Damascus has condemned the violations, and a senior government minister has publicly welcomed the demonstrations.
But this raises a legitimate political question:
Can the Syrian government move beyond statements of condemnation and pursue concrete diplomatic and legal measures capable of stopping Israeli incursions and protecting civilians?
This is no longer simply a matter of border violations. It concerns the lives of civilians and the sovereignty of a nation facing repeated violations of its territory.
The message from Syria’s streets today is unmistakable: Quneitra does not stand alone, and southern Syria is not territory Israel can occupy with impunity.