Israel decimated the group’s leadership last fall and degraded its military capabilities. Can the same strategy work against a far more powerful foe?

The Israeli Air Force (IAF) says it has destroyed "dozens" of radars and surface-to-air missile launchers as part of the attacks on Iran's air defence systems in the west of the country. Calling it a "large-scale strike", the IAF says this forms part of ongoing operations to damage Iran's air defence systems and those of its proxies.

Israel unleashed airstrikes across Iran for a third day on Sunday and threatened even greater force as some Iranian missiles evaded Israeli air defenses to strike buildings in the heart of the country.

Iranian media reported that Israel struck the South Pars Gas Field in what would be the first attack on an Iranian energy site.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps warned of a "new wave of operations” after targeting what it said were Israel's fighter jet fuel-production facilities and energy supply centers. Iran launched a barrage of missiles at Israel late on Saturday.

Throughout the day on Friday, Israel carried out wave upon wave of strikes on nuclear facilities and missile bases in Iran. The Natanz uranium enrichment site and the nuclear facility in Isfahan have been hit and top military leaders have been assassinated - as have nuclear scientists.

Stock markets across the Gulf fell on Sunday morning after Israel and Iran launched fresh attacks on each other overnight, sparking fears of a widening conflict in the Middle East.

Russia has maintained a delicate balancing act in the Middle East for decades, trying to navigate its warm relations with Israel even as it has developed strong economic and military ties with Iran.

Israel on Sunday issued evacuation warnings to Iranians living near weapons production facilities in Tehran as the two nations continued to exchange missile attacks that began on Friday. "The Israeli military will strike these sites and will continue to peel away the Iranian snake’s skin in Tehran and everywhere — targeting nuclear capabilities and weapons systems,