US, Israel, agree 2-week Iran ceasefire

IRAN, the United States and Israel agreed to a two-week ceasefire, an 11th-hour deal that allowed U.S. President Donald Trump to pull back from his threat to unleash a bombing campaign that would destroy Iranian civilisation. Hours after the announcement, Iran and Gulf Arab countries reported new attacks yesterday.

It was not clear if the sporadic attacks would be enough to scuttle the deal, which U.S. Vice President JD Vance called “fragile.”

Even before the new strikes were reported, much about the deal was unclear as the sides presented vastly different visions of the terms.

Iran said the deal would allow it to formalise its new practice of charging ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz, but the terms were not clear, nor was whether ships would feel safe using the crucial transit lane for oil. It also was unclear whether any other country agreed to this condition.

Pakistan, which helped to mediate the deal, and others said fighting would pause in Lebanon, where Israel has launched a ground invasion against the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group. Israel said it would not, and strikes hit Beirut on Wednesday.

The fate of Iran’s missile and nuclear programs, the elimination of which were major objectives for the U.S. and Israel in going to war, also remained unclear. Trump said the U.S. would work with Iran to remove buried enriched uranium, though Iran did not confirm that.

In the streets of Tehran, pro-government demonstrators screamed: “Death to America, death to Israel, death to compromisers!” after the ceasefire announcement and burned American and Israeli flags.

The chants underscored the anger animating hard-liners, who have been preparing for what many assumed would be an apocalyptic battle with the United States. Trump warned Tuesday that “a whole civilization will die tonight,” if a deal wasn’t reached.

Trump initially said Iran proposed a “workable” 10-point plan that could help end the war the U.S. launched with Israel on Feb. 28. But when a version in Farsi emerged that indicated Iran would be allowed to continue enriching uranium, which is key to building a nuclear weapon, Trump called it fraudulent without elaborating.

Trump also suggested American warships would be “hanging” around the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20 per cent of all traded oil and natural gas passes in peacetime. That could be a potential flashpoint in days to come.

Israel backed the U.S. ceasefire with Iran, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said early Wednesday that the deal doesn’t cover fighting against Hezbollah. Israel’s military said later that fighting and ground operations continue.

Hezbollah has not confirmed if it will abide by the ceasefire, though the group has said it was open to giving mediators a chance to secure an agreement. An official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment publicly, said the group would not stop firing at Israel unless Israel agreed to do the same.

Follow our WhatsApp Channel now! https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbAjG7g3gvWajUAEX12Q