Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei's death is "historically significant" but will not "automatically" lead to the fall of the Iranian system, the widow of the country's last shah told AFP in an interview Tuesday.

"The passing of a man -- however central he may be to the architecture of power -- does not automatically mean the end of a system," said Farah Pahlavi, three days after US-Israeli strikes on the Islamic republic killed Khamenei.

Governments and airlines scrambled Tuesday to repatriate tens of thousands of travellers stranded in the Middle East following the eruption of a regional conflict sparked by Israel-US strikes on Iran.

Countries across the region shut their airspace as Iran retaliated against US allies, Qatar saying it had blocked an attack on its airport, one of the major hubs in the region.

BEIJING, March 3 (Reuters) - China opposes the military strikes launched by Israel and the U.S. against Iran and demands an immediate cessation of hostilities, Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his Israeli counterpart Gideon Saar on Tuesday, according to his ministry.

"Force cannot truly solve problems; instead, it often creates new ones and leaves serious long-term consequences. The real value of military power lies not on the battlefield but in preventing war," it quoted Wang as telling Saar in a call.

By Parisa Hafezi

DUBAI, March 3 (Reuters) - Terrified residents of Iran's capital described it as a ghost town on Tuesday, its streets largely emptied by a U.S.-Israeli missile barrage apart from security checkpoints and Revolutionary Guards patrols that rove the city.

The airstrikes have killed hundreds of Iranians since Saturday while Israeli and U.S. leaders have voiced hopes they would trigger an uprising, but Reuters found no evidence one was imminent in phone conversations with people around the country.

By Humeyra Pamuk

WASHINGTON, March 3 (Reuters) - The United States on Tuesday said it was pulling out non-essential personnel from several U.S. missions across the Middle East and advised American citizens to immediately leave the region even as air travel remains severely disrupted due to U.S.-Israeli military operation on Iran.

March 3 (Reuters) - Commercial flights across parts of the Middle East have been grounded due to the escalating conflict after U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran, stranding foreign nationals and prompting governments to consider repatriation.

Below is what governments and officials have said about repatriation plans, in alphabetical order by country:AUSTRALIA

Foreign Minister Penny Wong said Australia was in discussions with airlines to help Australians stranded in the Middle East, but that evacuations would be difficult while much of the region's airspace remains closed.

By Olivia Le Poidevin

GENEVA, March 3 (Reuters) - Iran's ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva on Tuesday ruled out for now any negotiations with the United States, three days after the U.S. and Israel launched joint strikes on his country.

Explosions rocked Tehran again on Tuesday, and financial markets around the world tumbled amid fears of a prolonged disruption to global energy supplies. U.S. President Donald Trump and Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have given open-ended answers when asked how long the war might last.

By Renee Maltezou

ATHENS, March 3 (Reuters) - Greece's shipping minister on Tuesday called for the protection of global shipping and seafarers, amid an "alarming" situation that has left dozens of ships stranded in the Strait of Hormuz and the wider area due to the widening Iran conflict.

March 3 (Reuters) - Iran's ongoing conflict with the U.S.and Israel has led to sporting events being postponed in several countries, while competitions elsewhere have been hit by travel disruption, with thousands of flights cancelled in some of the world's busiest transit hubs.

PLAYER ARRIVALS AT PARALYMPIC GAMES DISRUPTED

The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) said it is working to find solutions after several athletes were finding it difficult to travel to the Milano Cortina Winter Paralympic Games due to travel disruptions in several Middle Eastern airports.

By Emma Farge

GENEVA, March 3 (Reuters) - Hundreds of thousands more children face acute malnutrition in Afghanistan this year amid a hunger crisis exacerbated by foreign aid cuts and violence on the border with Pakistan, a U.N. official said on Tuesday.

International aid to Afghanistan has fallen sharply since 2021, when U.S.-led forces exited the country and the Taliban regained power. The crisis has been compounded by natural calamities including earthquakes.