{"id":352442,"date":"2026-03-18T10:53:08","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T10:53:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/352442\/"},"modified":"2026-03-18T10:53:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T10:53:08","slug":"israel-claims-to-have-killed-iranian-intelligence-minister-in-a-strike-overnight-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/352442\/","title":{"rendered":"Israel claims to have killed Iranian intelligence minister in a strike overnight \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

Main PointsIsrael<\/a> claimed on Tuesday to have killed Iran\u2019s<\/a> top security leader Ali LarijaniJoe Kent, one of the United States\u2019 top counterterrorism officials, announced his resignation on Tuesday, citing his opposition to the Iran warDonald Trump<\/a>, while meeting with Miche\u00e1l Martin<\/a> on St Patrick\u2019s Day, blasted Nato and Keir Starmer<\/a> for their approach to the war in the Middle East Key Reads<\/p>\n

Jade Wilson – 11 minutes ago<\/p>\n

Israel says Iranian intelligence Minister has been killed<\/p>\n

Iranian Intelligence Minister Esmail Khatib was \u201celiminated\u201d in a strike overnight, Israel\u2019s Defence Minister Israel Kratz has said.<\/p>\n

There has been no confirmation from Iran regarding Khatib\u2019s reported death.<\/p>\n

Katz said he and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had authorised the military to kill any other senior Iranian official being targeted without the need for additional approval.<\/p>\n

Jade Wilson – 56 minutes ago<\/p>\n

\"FirefightersFirefighters extinguish a burning destroyed vehicle that was targeted by Israeli bombardment in Lebanon’s southern coastal city of Sidon. Photograph: Mahmoud Zayyat \/ AFP via Getty Images Lebanon war leaves equivalent of a classroom of children hurt or dead every day, says UN<\/p>\n

War in Lebanon has wounded or killed the equivalent of one classroom of children daily \u200cand robbed the remainder of their sense of normalcy since it began two weeks ago, a top official of the UN children\u2019s agency said. <\/p>\n

According to Lebanese health ministry figures, at least \u200b111 children have been killed and 334 wounded in Israeli strikes on Lebanon since March 2nd, when Lebanese armed group Hizbullah joined the regional war by firing into Israeli territory. That equals nearly 30 children a day.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s a classroom of children every day since the beginning of the war that\u2019s either killed or injured in Lebanon,\u201d Unicef deputy executive director \u200bTed Chaiban said.<\/p>\n

Lebanon\u2019s child deaths are among 1,200 children killed across the region in recent weeks \u2013 nearly 200 in Iran, four in Israel and one in Kuwait.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019ve \u2060paid a terrible price. And the first thing we\u2019re calling for is a de-escalation, a political way forward to this war,\u201d Chaiban \u200ctold \u200cReuters \u200bin Beirut.<\/p>\n

Israel says it does not deliberately target civilians and that its warnings give civilians enough time to leave before strikes take place.<\/p>\n

Jade Wilson – 58 minutes ago<\/p>\n

Nato deploys another US \u200cPatriot missile defence system to southern Turkey<\/p>\n

Nato is deploying another US \u200cPatriot missile defence system to the southern Turkish province of \u200cAdana, where personnel from the US and other countries are located \u200bin the Incirlik Air Base, Turkey\u2019s defence ministry said on Wednesday. <\/p>\n

Turkey, which has Nato\u2019s second-largest army and neigbhbours Iran, said \u200blast week the alliance had deployed a Patriot system to \u2060its southeastern Malatya province, near a Nato radar \u200cbase, \u200cas part \u200bof steps to boost air defences against missile threats from the Iran war.<\/p>\n

Adana \u2060hosts Turkey\u2019s \u200bIncirlik Air Base, where personnel \u200bfrom the United States, Qatar, Spain and Poland \u200care located, as well as \u200bTurkish troops.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn addition to national-level measures taken to \u2060ensure the security of \u2060our airspace \u200band our citizens, another Patriot system, commissioned by Allied Air Command in Ramstein\/Germany, is being deployed in Adana, in addition to the existing Spanish Patriot system stationed there,\u201d the ministry said at a weekly briefing.<\/p>\n

Austria cuts petrol tax to counter war\u2019s impact on prices<\/p>\n

Austria will temporarily trim a tax \u200con petrol and diesel fuel \u200bby 5 euro cents a litre and limit fuel \u200bretailers\u2019 margins to counter \u2060the effect of oil prices \u200cdriven \u200cup \u200bby the Iran war, the \u2060three-party \u200bruling coalition said on \u200bWednesday.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are reducing \u200cthe petroleum tax \u200band introducing measures to limit \u2060margins \u2060across the \u200bentire value chain. These specific measures will bring the price of diesel and petrol \u200cdown by around \u206010 (euro) cents (12 cents) per litre,\u201d Austrain chancellor Christian Stocker \u200csaid in a statement.<\/p>\n

The Israeli military has repeated its sweeping evacuation order for southern Lebanon, extending more than 40km from the Israeli border.<\/p>\n

Avichai Adraee, the Israeli army\u2019s Arabic-language spokesperson, ordered people to head north of the Zahrani river this morning before the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) began a bombing campaign against what he said were Hizbullah targets.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe strikes are ongoing as the IDF is operating with considerable force in the area,\u201d he said in a post on X. <\/p>\n

\u201cTherefore, for your safety, we reiterate our call for you to evacuate your homes immediately and head north of the Zahrani river.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Israeli military has already issued displacement orders for people south of the Litani river and Beirut\u2019s southern suburbs. Nearly a million people in Lebanon have been internally displaced since the fighting began.<\/p>\n

Jade Wilson – 2 hours ago<\/p>\n

Israel confirms its tank fire hit UN Lebanon base on March 6th<\/p>\n

Israel\u2019s military has acknowledged its tank fire hit a UN position in southern Lebanon on March 6th, wounding Ghanaian peacekeepers.<\/p>\n

Initial findings by an internal UN inquiry had suggested Israel was behind the attack, a western military source had told Reuters on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

In a statement to Reuters, \u200bIsrael\u2019s military acknowledged its troops were behind the incident, but said they had responded to anti-tank missile fire from Hizbullah, which had moderately wounded two of its soldiers.<\/p>\n

\u201cA comprehensive investigation concluded in recent days determined that the fire that \u2060hit the Unifil personnel was mistakenly carried out by the IDF [Israel Defense Forces] troops that misidentified the Unifil troops as the source of the anti-tank fire moments earlier,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe \u200cIDF \u200cregrets \u200bthe incident and has conveyed its apologies through the appropriate channels to Ghana and the United Nations. The findings of the investigations have been disseminated within the IDF to prevent recurrence of similar incidents.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jade Wilson – 2 hours ago<\/p>\n

Unreasonable to expect Lebanon to disarm Hizbullah as bombings continue, France says\"AA municipality worker stands amid debris following an overnight Israeli airstrike in Beirut, Lebanon. Photograph: AFP via Getty Images <\/p>\n

It would be unreasonable \u200cto expect Lebanon\u2019s government to disarm \u200bIran-backed Hizbullah while the country is being bombed \u200bby Israel, France\u2019s \u2060special envoy for Lebanon said \u200con \u200cWednesday.<\/p>\n

Only a negotiation \u2060would \u200bresolve the \u200bcrisis, Jean-Yves Le \u200cDrian told France \u200bInfo radio. <\/p>\n

\u201cIsrael occupied Lebanon \u200cfor a very \u200blong time and \u2060failed \u2060to eradicate \u200bHizbullah\u2019s military capacity. Therefore, they cannot now ask the Lebanese government to do \u200cthat job \u2060in three days under bombardment,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Jade Wilson – 2 hours ago<\/p>\n

Iran launches attack on airbase in UAE where Australian soldiers are stationed<\/p>\n

Iran launched an attack on an airbase in the UAE where Australian soldiers are stationed, causing a fire that damaged medical and accommodation facilities, the Australian prime minister, Anthony Albanese, said.<\/p>\n

An Iranian projectile hit a road just outside the Al Minhad base, which hosts more than 100 Australian military personnel.<\/p>\n

Albanese confirmed that no Australian personnel were injured.<\/p>\n

It was not clear if the projectile was a missile or drone strike, but Albanese said it started a fire that caused \u201cminor damage\u201d to an accommodation block and medical facility.<\/p>\n

He could not confirm if Iran directly targeted the Al Minhad base while maintaining Australia was not at war.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Iranian regime is engaging in random attacks right across the region. We know that is the case,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Jade Wilson – 2 hours ago<\/p>\n

Iranian missile barrage kills two in Israel<\/p>\n

An Iranian missile barrage killed two people in Ramat Gan, near Tel Aviv.<\/p>\n

Israel\u2019s national railway company said shrapnel had also disrupted train services.<\/p>\n

Authorities reported that falling munitions had hit multiple sites in central Israel in the overnight barrage that triggered air raid sirens across the area, after another day of heavy Israeli bombardments in Iran and Lebanon.<\/p>\n

That brings the number of deaths from missile attacks on Israel since the start of the Middle East war to 14 people.<\/p>\n

\"EmergencyEmergency workers respond to a ballistic missile attack in the Tel Aviv suburb of Ramat Gan, Israel. Photograph: Alexi J Rosenfeld\/Getty Images <\/p>\n

Jade Wilson – 2 hours ago<\/p>\n

Alerts on Dubai resident\u2019s phones went off throughout the night and into this morning, warning them of the risk of missiles and drones and to seek shelter away from windows and open areas. <\/p>\n

It was yet another heavy night of Iranian missiles and drones being launched over the United Arab Emirates. <\/p>\n

Several loud booms rang out over Dubai\u2019s popular marine area this morning, and six military helicopters were seen flying low over the bay. <\/p>\n

Footage sent to Al Jazeera shows missiles and drones being intercepted in Dubai overnight, with debris falling down on the city\u2019s international convention centre. <\/p>\n

In a statement this morning, the UAE\u2019s ministry of defence confirmed that \u201cthe sounds heard in scattered areas of the country are the result of air defence systems intercepting ballistic missiles, as well as fighter jets intercepting drones and loitering munitions\u201d. <\/p>\n

All air interception operations had been successful, they said.<\/p>\n

While tens of thousands of residents and tourists fled Dubai as the conflict broke out, many people have stayed behind. <\/p>\n

Jade Wilson – 3 hours ago<\/p>\n

A fire onboard the USS Gerald R Ford injured sailors and destroyed 100 beds, and the carrier will reportedly set sail for Crete for repairs.<\/p>\n

The American aircraft carrier has been at sea for almost nine months, and is stationed in the Red Sea to support the war on Iran. <\/p>\n

Officials did not say how long the $13 billion vessel was expected to remain in Crete.<\/p>\n

One of the officials said nearly 200 sailors were treated for smoke-related injuries when the fire broke out in the ship\u2019s main laundry area. The fire took hours to bring under control and had an impact on roughly 100 sleeping berths.<\/p>\n

Jade Wilson – 3 hours ago<\/p>\n

US targets Iran coastline with \u2018bunker buster\u2019 bombs near Strait of Hormuz<\/p>\n

The United States<\/a> military said it has targeted sites along Iran\u2019s coastline near the Strait of Hormuz with powerful \u201cbunker buster\u201d bombs because Iranian <\/a>anti-ship missiles posed a risk to international shipping there.<\/p>\n

The strait, a transit point for a fifth of the global oil trade, remains largely closed as Iran threatens to attack tankers linked to the US and Israel. Oil prices have soared.<\/p>\n

Jade Wilson – 3 hours ago<\/p>\n

Call for ex-counter-terror chief to face Congress after resigning over Iran <\/p>\n

A senior Democrat has called on Joe Kent, director of the US National Counterterrorism Center and a far-right political figure, to testify to Congress about why he resigned from his job over the war on Iran.<\/p>\n

California representative Ro Khanna\u2019s call came after Kent, a supporter of Trump, wrote on X that \u201cI cannot in good conscience support the ongoing war in Iran. Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation\u201d before blaming Israel.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe American people deserve to know why this Administration dragged us into war in Iran,\u201d Khanna wrote on social media. \u201cJoe Kent should come before Congress. If even officials like Joe Kent do not believe Iran posed an imminent threat, why are we sending more Americans to die in this war?\u201d<\/p>\n

Jade Wilson – 3 hours ago<\/p>\n

Iran attacks Israel and Gulf countries after security chief killed <\/p>\n

Iran launched strikes towards Israel and neighbouring Gulf countries early on Wednesday, with explosions heard in the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, and interceptions reported in Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n

The attacks came hours after Iranian state media confirmed Israel\u2019s military killed top Iranian security official Ali Larijani in an overnight strike, as well as gen Gholam Reza Soleimani, the head of the Revolutionary Guard\u2019s Basij force, known for its role in suppressing protests. <\/p>\n

Meanwhile, an Israeli air strike struck an apartment building in Bachoura, central Beirut, flattening it as day broke.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Main PointsIsrael claimed on Tuesday to have killed Iran\u2019s top security leader Ali LarijaniJoe Kent, one of the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":352443,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[969,42,11829,3410,43,40,38,41,39,115],"class_list":["post-352442","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-donald-trump","tag-headlines","tag-iran","tag-israel","tag-news","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories","tag-united-states"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/352442","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=352442"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/352442\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/352443"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=352442"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=352442"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=352442"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}