<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><a href="http://9news.com.au/" rel="" target="" title="Israel"><span>Israel</span></a><span> says it has killed two senior </span><a href="http://9news.com.au/iran" rel="" target="" title="Iranian "><span>Iranian</span></a><span> security officials in a major blow to the country's leadership.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Iran, which did not immediately confirm either death, fired new salvos of missiles and drones at its Gulf Arab neighbours and Israel in a war that showed no signs of abating.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, and Gen Gholam Reza Soleimani, the head of the Revolutionary Guard's all-volunteer Basij force, were "eliminated last night" Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said on Tuesday afternoon (late Tuesday AEDT).</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/life-behind-bars-for-champagne-bottle-murder-in-hotel/d8eb08f5-efc1-4a12-913f-3dc56b3ba4bb"><strong><span>Life in jail for champagne bottle murder in Crown hotel room</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Larijani was considered one of the most powerful figures in the country since </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/us-israel-strike-on-iran-supreme-leader-ayatollah-ali-khamenei/14563354-250d-40b4-8330-645799b4e899" rel="" target="" title="Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei"><span>Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei</span></a><span> was killed in an airstrike on the first day of the war.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Both men were key to </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/iran-death-toll-protests-government-crackdown/9fd7a8d6-5943-404e-938d-3f411dc5443d" rel="" target="" title="Iran's violent crackdown on protests in January"><span>Iran's violent crackdown on protests in January</span></a><span> that challenged the theocracy's 47-year rule. The killings would strip Iran of important leaders as the Islamic Republic faces its greatest test in recent decades in its war with the US and Israel.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>With concerns growing about a global energy crisis, Iran fired new attacks at several of its Gulf Arab neighbours and oil infrastructure throughout the region.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/world/us-israel-iran-war-israel-says-it-killed-two-top-iranian-officials-in-wartime-blow-to-countrys-leadership/884ed391-75ff-4735-ae7c-dccb0233cb05" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Dubai, a major transit hub for international travel, briefly shut its airspace, the </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/us-israel-attack-iran-dubai-airport-hit-as-iran-targets-gulf-neighbours-keeps-stranglehold-on-oil-shipping/787cc401-96a3-42fb-842b-374f4a3fb6d1" rel="" target="" title="second disruption to flights in the city in as many days"><span>second disruption to flights in the city in as many days</span></a><span>.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>An Iranian official said Tehran had no intention of relinquishing its tight grip on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial waterway for oil.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The Israeli military also said it had begun a "wide-scale wave of strikes" across Iran's capital and was stepping up strikes on Iran-backed Hezbollah militants in Lebanon.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE: </span></strong><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/man-charged-with-murder-after-wife-and-daughter-found-dead-in-queensland-home/3af90956-55cd-4fe9-94da-93b596c4aa79"><strong><span>Man charged with murder of wife and daughter</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h3><strong><span>Israel says it has killed two top Iranian officials</span></strong></h3></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Larijani hails from one of Iran's best-known political families. A former parliamentary speaker and senior policy adviser, he advised the late Khamenei on strategy in nuclear talks with the Trump administration.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Larijani was sanctioned by the US Treasury in January as Tehran violently suppressed nationwide protests. It identified him as being "responsible for coordinating the response to the protests on behalf of the supreme leader of Iran".</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Soleimani also was sanctioned by the US, as well as the European Union and other nations, over his role in helping suppress dissent for years through the Basij.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the killings were aimed at weakening Iran's government.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"We are undermining this regime to give the Iranian people the opportunity to remove it," he said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It won't happen quickly or easily, but if we persist, they will have the chance to take their destiny into their own hands."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has not been seen in public since succeeding his father, who was killed in the opening day of the war. Israel suspects Khamenei was wounded.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE: </span></strong><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/crown-melbourne-cuts-200-jobs-amid-challenging-economic-conditions/d56b2fc3-623f-46f4-a5a9-891704ee4843" rel="" target="" title=""><strong><span>Crown Melbourne to cut 200 jobs</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><h3><span>Iranian strikes pressure neighbours and oil markets</span></h3></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Iran kept up the pressure on the energy infrastructure around the region, hitting an oil facility in Fujairah, an emirate in the United Arab Emirates that has been repeatedly targeted. State-run WAM news reported that no one had been injured in the blast from the drone strike.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Also on Tuesday, a tanker anchored off the coast of Fujairah sustained minor damage when it was hit by debris from an interception, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre, run by the British military, reported. Nobody was injured.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>A man was killed by the debris of a missile intercepted over Abu Dhabi, the eighth person to die in the UAE since the start of the war, authorities said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Iran's attacks on Gulf nations and its grip on the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's oil is transported, have sparked increasing concerns of a global energy crisis and are unnerving the world economy.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>A handful of ships have crossed through the strait, and Iran has said the vital waterway technically remains open — just not for the United States, Israel and their allies. About 20 vessels have been struck since the war began.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"They are flying, launching missiles, should we just sit back and do nothing in response?" Iran's parliamentary speaker, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, said on state television.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>With oil prices rising, US President Donald Trump said he had demanded that roughly a half-dozen countries send warships to ensure ships can pass through the Strait of Hormuz. But his appeals brought no immediate commitments, with many saying they are hesitant to get involved in a war with no defined exit plan and sceptical that they could do more than the US Navy.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>More than 1300 people have been killed in Iran since the start of the conflict, according to the Iranian Red Crescent.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Israel did not immediately release details of its attacks on Lebanon, but the Lebanese army said that one of its soldiers died and four more were wounded in an airstrike on the village of Kfar Sir.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Israel's strikes have displaced more than 1 million Lebanese — or roughly 20 per cent of the population — according to the Lebanese government, which says some 850 people have been killed.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Some Israeli troops have pushed into southern Lebanon, and there are fears Israel is preparing a large-scale invasion.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Israel reported two Iranian salvos early Tuesday fired toward Tel Aviv and an area south of the Sea of Galilee, and then more later in the day. More launches from Lebanon were also reported.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>In Israel, 12 people have been killed by Iranian missile fire. At least 13 US military members have been killed.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><em><span>NEVER MISS A STORY:</span></em></strong><span> </span><em><span>Get your breaking news and exclusive stories first by following us across all platforms.</span></em></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><ul><li><em><strong><span>Download the 9NEWS App here via</span></strong></em><span> </span><a href="https://apps.apple.com/au/app/9news/id1010533727" rel="" target="" title=""><em><strong><span>Apple</span></strong></em></a><span> </span><em><strong><span>and</span></strong></em><span> </span><a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=nineNewsAlerts.nine.com&amp;hl=en_AU&amp;pli=1" rel="" target="" title=""><em><strong><span>Google Play</span></strong></em></a></li><li><em><strong><span>Make 9News your preferred source on Google by</span></strong></em><span> </span><a href="https://9.nine.com.au/8x987w" rel="" target="" title=""><em><strong><span>ticking this box here</span></strong></em></a></li><li><em><strong><span>Sign up to</span></strong></em><span> </span><a href="https://login.nine.com.au/edm?client_id=nineatnine" rel="" target="" title=""><em><strong><span>our breaking newsletter here</span></strong></em></a></li></ul></div></div>