Israel hits Tehran with air strikes as Iranians mark Persian new year – follow live

Frank Gardner
Security correspondent, in Doha

It’s the first day of Eid Al-Fitr, a three-day Islamic
holiday marking the end of the month of Ramadan with its ritual fasting.

In normal circumstances, this is a time for celebration,
togetherness, renewal and charity. But today the dark shadow of war hangs over
this whole region here in the Middle East.

Here in Qatar, energy experts are still assessing the
extensive damage to the country’s key gas processing facility at Ras Laffan,
which got hit twice by Iranian missiles earlier this week.

Further up the coast to the north, in Saudi Arabia and
Kuwait, oil and petrochemical installations have also been targeted by Iranian
missiles, despite repeated denials by Tehran that it is targeting civilian
sites.

Down the coast on the narrow Strait of Hormuz, shipping is
still backed up on either side, with Iran dictating which ships can pass and
which ones it will attack with drones and missiles.

The consequences of this war are already affecting economies
around the globe.