China's foreign minister tells Israeli counterpart that attacks on Iran must end

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.

Explosions tore through Tehran and Beirut on Tuesday and financial markets around the world tumbled at the prospect of a prolonged disruption to global energy supplies from the U.S.-Israeli air war against Iran.

Wang told Saar that China believes in resolving international and regional issues through dialogue and negotiation and will continue to play a constructive role in easing the situation.

Tuesday's call follows three calls the top Chinese diplomat held on Monday with the foreign ministers of Iran, Oman and France, in which he urged Gulf countries to unite to oppose external interference.

Wang also spoke with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Sunday about the Iran crisis.

However, Wang has not spoken to U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio since the launch of the U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran on Saturday, when Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was among a number of senior Iranian officials killed.

(Reporting by Shi Bu，Yukun Zhang and Ryan WooEditing by Aidan Lewis and Gareth Jones)