A large crowd gathers in Tehran on Wednesday for the funeral of Ali Larijani, Iran’s top security official, who was killed in an Israeli strike. The announcement came after attacks on the huge Iranian South Pars gasfield and on a refinery in Asaluyeh, a large energy hub on Iran’s Gulf coast. The South Pars offshore gasfield, which Iran shares with Qatar, is the largest such facility in the world. Global oil and gas prices rose sharply after the attacks, which according to Israeli media reports were carried out by Israel in co-ordination with Washington. Israel confirmed it killed Iran’s intelligence minister, Esmail Khatib, in an overnight air strike on Tehran.

Source: The Irish Times March 18, 2026 19:20 UTC